


Bright-Eyed Brats

by landofbutts



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Anal Sex, Baby Isabel, Falling In Love, Family Fluff, Fluff, In later chapters - Freeform, M/M, Slow Build, Smut, Student Eren, confident! Eren, cute love story, cuteness, eventually, french! levi, levis a dad, lots of fluff, single parent, slight angst, there will be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-02
Updated: 2017-11-16
Packaged: 2018-11-08 05:25:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 50,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11074944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/landofbutts/pseuds/landofbutts
Summary: Levi's a single father that just gets on with life. When he meets a certain bright-eyed brat on a flight home, he finds that his life becomes a lot more interesting as he just can't seem to get away from him.





	1. The plane journey.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and his daughter fly home from France and meet an interesting brat on the way.

"Isabel, asseyez-vous." Levi spoke to his daughter, telling her to sit still in his native language. 

Levi was currently strapping his three year old daughter down in an aeroplane. They had a seven hour flight ahead of them from France to Canada. It was a tradition for him to visit his home country every year, and for the past three years he hasn't been able to because the flight was so long. However this was the first year he had taken Isabel, and although the holiday itself was wonderful, the flying was not. 

"Papa!" Isabel whined, trying to wriggle out of his grasp and off the chair. 

Unfortunately they hadn't been able to book a window seat, meaning they had to share in a three with a stranger. Levi had been totally against it at first and had considered booking a flight home a different day. He didn't want to sit Isabel next to anyone who was a stranger to her, but equally he didn't want her in the aisle seat. That meant he was sitting in the aisle, and Isabel was next to him, and next to her sat another man who Levi thought looked a little young. More like a typical uni student. 

"'S not comfy." Isabel told Levi, trying to pat his hand away from tying her seatbelt. 

"Isabel." Levi said firmly, pausing to look down at her. "Stop making a fuss. You need to wear this okay? When we're in the air you can take it off." He said sternly, his voice full of a French accent. It wasn't as thick as someone coming fresh from France, Levi had lost his accent ever so slightly. But it was still strong and very evident where he was from. 

When Isabel didn't reply and instead pouted up at Levi, he done up her seatbelt properly and relaxed back. She was currently wearing light blue dungarees with a purple shirt underneath and a brown cardigan. Her hair was pulled into two pigtails and her fringe pinned back. It was an odd colour, her hair. It was brown with a red tinge to it, and honestly Levi loved it. He was getting better at learning to braid it. It was still fairly short and fair, but he was learning. Complete with her outfit was white trainers with flowers on and she was holding a cuddly toy that looked an awful lot like a naked human (of course with no genitals) that he just couldn't pry her away from. She insisted it had to stay close to her and he found whenever he tried to take it off her - even just to wash it - it would end up in a massive tantrum. 

The take off went about as smoothly as it could do. Levi was never a good flyer, he absolutely hated it. He hated the idea of aeroplanes and flying in general. Being trapped in a box with a bunch of strangers, breathing in recycled oxygen - and not to mention the filth. He despised it. He had his own methods to remain calm, and unfortunately he had to keep them to himself as he had to appear calm to Isabel. If he started freaking out then he was positive she would. Just before he takeoff Levi gave Isabel a small packets of sweets to suck on, just so her ears didn't hurt too much. He had his own to suck on as they took off. Levi kept his eyes straight ahead and focused on his breathing, occasionally glancing at the sign to see when it was safe to take off their seat belts. 

"Papa look!" Isabel squeaked happily, pointing to the window as she tried her best to lean upwards. 

"Careful Izzy." Levi said a little softer, moving to gently move her arm back so it wasn't in the other mans personal space. 

"But- but the houses!" She said with an excited giggle. Yeah, this was the part she was happy about. Levi was positive she'd be crying in about three hours time when she wanted off. 

"I know. We're leaving France." He told her, nodding. 

"Bye bye France!" Isabel shouted towards the window, waving as she did. It earnt a few looks from those around them, some looking unimpressed and some amused. It got a smile from the man sitting next to her, so at least he wasn't pissed off at his daughter. Just yet. 

Soon enough the ding signalled to announce everyone could take off their seat belts if they wished. He took Isabel's off for her, knowing fine well she'd want it off. He however left his on, feeling much safer with it on. 

As soon as Isabel was free from the strap she scrambled up towards the window, leaning over the stranger and peering out of it. 

"Isabel!" Levi half hissed, turning in his seat. "Asseyez-vous et laisser l'homme seul." 

"But papa, je veux voir!" 

"Non, je ne vais pas vous raconter à nouveau." He ordered, speaking quietly not to draw attention but sternly enough. "I'm sorry." He said to the man, giving a small sigh. "She gets very excitable at time." He explained, nodding for Isabel to get off the man. 

"That's okay." The man replied with a soft grin. "You can come look out if you want." He said softly, looking from Levi to Isabel. "Though there's not much, just clouds now." He laughed softly, earning a small giggle from Isabel. 

Isabel looked back to Levi for confirmation that it was okay to go look out of the window. He was a little unsure about the man, but he looked like a student and he was probably just trying to be nice. With a small nod from Levi, Isabel broke into a wide grin and leant over a little more to the window. She put her knees on the notepad that was on the mans knee and peered out the window. 

"What's your name, kid?" Levi asked him. 

"I'm not a kid." The man replied, turning to look at Levi with a frown. "I'm twenty two." 

"Okay then, what's your name, twenty two year old kid?" 

With a small huff, the man turned back to look out the window. "Eren." He told Levi. "What's yours, old man?" 

Levi clenched his jaw slightly at that. So the brat had some bite to him. He could deal with that. "Levi." He replied, raising an eyebrow at him. "And I'm hardly much older than you, brat. I'm just coming up to thirty." He half huffed. 

"Old." Eren mumbled under his breath. 

Levi rolled his eyes at the kid and moved to pull his bag up from under the seat in front of him. He opened up the tray for Isabel's seat and put her juice box and some biscuits for her to snack on on there. At the sound of rustling, Isabel turned back round and climbed off Eren to sit down in her seat. 

"And who's this gorgeous girl?" Eren asked, obviously not getting the fact that the conversation was over. Or he did and he was just creating more on purpose. 

"Izzy!" Isabel told Eren with a giggle, grinning up widely at the brunet. 

"Izzy for short, Isabel when she's being naughty." Levi smirked slightly as he opened up the biscuits for her. 

Getting out a small wipe, he wiped her hands gently for her before letting her start eating them. He'd much rather clean them like that than risk her getting something from the aeroplane toilet. The idea of having to go in there at some point this trip was already making his skin crawl. 

"Well hello Izzy! I'm Eren." Eren said with an equally wide grin. 

If anyone looked over they'd probably think Isabel was more related to Eren than she was Levi. She looked a lot more like him, strangely enough. Maybe it was just because they had the same shit-eating grin on at the moment, or because Levi knew what Isabel was like and how excitable she got. How friendly she could be yet determined, even defensive at times. Something told him this brat Eren was similar. 

"Aeron!" Isabel tried repeating, her making it sound more like she was saying air-on. It was most likely because she had grown up with a very slight French accent. Levi had taught her it alongside her English, and sure it definitely wasn't as strong as Levi's, but it was there. And of course Levi himself sometimes struggled pronouncing R's correctly. 

"Eren." 

"Aron!" 

"Eren." 

"E-ren-" 

"That's it!" 

"E-ren E-ren!" Isabel chanted happily, giggling and bouncing in her seat. 

"Careful missy or you'll spill your biscuits." Levi warned her softly. 

"Sorry papa." She said and moved to start eating said biscuits. 

"How old is she?" Eren asked Levi with a smile, making conversation with them. 

They were on the same flight for the next seven hours, they may as well pass the time somehow. Though saying that Levi had a book ready to read if he got bored. Not that he ever did with Isabel around to keep him on his toes, but he was hoping she would fall asleep and stay asleep for most of the flight. He had booked a night time flight purely for that purpose. But Levi could tell he'd get sick of sitting here waiting to get off eventually. 

"Three." Levi looked over to Eren. "She's a little small for her age but I think that's just because she never eats her veg." Levi joked with a small snort, smirking. 

Eren laughed lightly at the comment and grinned. "Can't take after you for that, then. You must eat your veg, being all big and strong." Eren smirked slightly. 

Levi raised an eyebrow back at him and tilted his head. Just processing what he said. "Are you taking the mick?" He asked in a stern voice. This earnt another laugh out of the brunet. 

"Not at all." He grinned. 

"You better not be-" 

"Papa is E-ren being mean?" Isabel interrupted, looking between the two men. 

"No Eren's fine petite, he's just being a little bit of a weirdo." 

"But papa," Isabel started, swallowing the last of her biscuit before pushing the packet back lightly. "You weird too." She said innocently, looking up at Levi with large eyes. 

Levi could tell she was going to be a troublemaker for him when she was older. Definitely. He found it hard to say no to her now, and when she'll be older, wanting to stay out late or borrow money. Fuck, she'd get away with murder. 

Levi snorted, giving her a small half smile at the comment. God she was cute. "Thanks for that one. Betrayed by my own daughter." 

Isabel gave a small giggle at Levi and nodded, looking back down to her tray. 

Once Isabel had finished her biscuits she started fidgeting slightly in her seat. She glanced around before looking up at Levi. 

"Can, can I take off?" She asked, kicking her feet gently. She shifted slightly to lift her foot up towards Levi, as if to tell him to take it off rather than her asking for permission. 

"I don't want to smell your stinky feet." Levi scoffed, however he moved to take her shoes off for her. 

"Stinky!" Isabel called happily, giggling away for herself. 

Once the shoes were off and placed safely in her little backpack Levi had for her, she started picking at her socks and tried pulling them off. That however was a little too much. If Isabel got up off the seat he'd rather she had something protecting her feet. 

"Izzy leave your socks on." Levi told her, taking her hand gently to stop her. 

"Definitely leave your socks on too." Eren gasped, nodding. "They'll let even more of the stink out!" He joked on with a smirk. 

"Stinky!" Isabel called again, grinning widely. "Don't want them," She told the pair, shaking her head. 

Pulling her hand out of Levi's, she started picking at them again. Just tugging harshly at them to get them off. She managed on one sock, pulling it off only for it to go flying across the plane and into some other passengers lap. 

It sent Eren into a fit of laughter. Isabel was unsure what was so funny, but she started giggling away happily at Eren laughing. 

The raven sent him the biggest glare he could as he grumbled and got up to go collect the lost sock. Of course he grunted an apology to the person it landed on, and luckily they weren't too angry about it. But he was still grumbling about it when he sat down. 

The next two hours of the journey passed okay in Levi's mind. He had had worse flights so far, that's for definite. Isabel was behaving quite well, most of her attention on her new friend Eren. She showed him her colouring book and all of her crayons, which took far longer than it should've. Anything to pass the time, Levi guessed. While they were chatting - and Eren was actually very good with her - he managed to read a chapter and a half in his book. 

Levi was keeping an ear out for Isabel and Eren, joining into the conversation occasionally when his name was mentioned. It wasn't that Levi was pieing her off onto Eren, definitely not. Levi had told Eren that if he wanted to sleep or be left alone just to tell him and they would do. But the brat seemed to be enjoying himself and was entertaining Isabel, so it was a win win really. Eren even started colouring in with her to help pass the time. 

Though it couldn't be smooth sailing the entire flight, of course not. Isabel soon started getting restless. She started fidgeting on her seat and wanted to change activities too often, only to want to go back to what she was doing previously. She was getting tired, basically, and Levi could tell. When Levi suggested she went to sleep it only made matters worse. She _nearly_ started crying, stating that she was having fun with Eren and wanted to stay awake to continue playing with him. Isabel was a good kid, of course she was. She was never normally one to be bratty and would rarely throw tantrums. But when she was tired? She could get upset quite quickly. 

In the end Levi managed to convince her to have a snuggle and watch a movie. He unfortunately had to brave the toilet with her as he didn't want her having an accident. She didn't wear nappies anymore, however sometimes she'd have an accident while she was asleep. 

When they returned to their seats Levi sat in Isabel's seat next to Eren before bringing her up onto his lap. She nearly started trying to change her clothes like she would for bed time before Levi explained she wouldn't need to do that yet. He did however let her take off her shoes, placing them next to them on his seat. 

Holding her gently, he managed to get out their portable DVD player which luckily already had in her favourite Disney film. He set it up for her on the little tray in front of them before pulling his hoodie around her to create a make-shift blanket for her. Eventually relaxing back, Isabel snuggled into Levi's chest and curled up on his lap. He kept his arms around her protectively and pressed play on the movie. 

And like always, she was asleep within minutes. Thumb in mouth, full weight leaning against Levi, completely knocked out. It was a trick he had learnt from his best friend Hanji, to put on a film so she'd sleep when he didn't want to. Sometimes it worked perfectly like now, but sometimes it only woke her up now. 

"She's adorable." Eren spoke softly, smiling at the two of them. 

Levi gave a small grunt and nodded, glancing down to Isabel as best he could. "She is." He agreed, kissing the top of her head gently. "Fucking pain in the arse sometimes, but I don't know what I'd do without her." He stated, sighing as he let his head fall back against the seat. 

Eren widened his eyes slightly at Levi's swearing before giving a small laugh. 

"What?" 

"Just you- waiting till she's asleep to swear. I bet you normally swear like a sailor, don't you?" Eren asked with a soft grin. 

"Only on weekdays." Levi replied with a faint smirk. He would be lying if he was he wasn't getting tired at this point. It was rolling onto midnight and the lack of sleep and lots of exercise from their holiday was catching up on him. 

"How sweet." Eren laughed softly, still trying to keep quiet as he did. 

They relaxed into a small, comfortable silence. Eren was actually turned to watch the movie that was still playing quietly. He may as well to pass the time. Levi decided to rest his eyes that were growing more and more dry and sore. He wasn't planning on sleeping just yet, but he was resting them. 

"You just been on holiday?" Levi asked Eren quietly, keeping his eyes closed and hoping the brat didn't think he was too rude by doing so. 

"Yeah." Eren smiled softly, nodding as he leant his head on his hand. "I visited my parents in Germany and decided to stop off in Paris." He explained to the older man. 

"You're German?" Levi asked, opening on eye slightly to peer at the other man. 

"Ja." Eren said with a wide grin. 

"Bien sûr. Le gars mignon est l'allemand." 

"I'm going to pretend you complimented me on my amazing culture instead of insulting me." Eren replied, voice laced with amusement. 

"Pretend all you want." Levi said cheekily, the smirk returning to his lips. 

"What about you? You going on holiday now or?" The brunet asked. 

"No, just been." Levi told him before he expanded on it. "Moved to Canada not that long ago and we just visited France again." 

"Oh nice." Eren grinned at that. "Where abouts in Canada do you live?" 

"Toronto." 

"Me too!" Eren widened his eyes, sitting up a little. 

When Levi jumped at the sudden movement Eren rested back again. 

"Well, kind of." 

"How the fuck can you kind of live somewhere?" 

"I commute." Eren explained with a smile. 

"From fucking Germany?" Levi opened his eyes at that and looked to Eren. When Isabel stirred against his chest he stayed still, trying not to wake her. 

"No." Eren laughed quietly. "I live in Vaughan but I go to Toronto uni." He explained. 

"Vaughan is in Toronto isn't it?" Levi asked, his eyebrows drawing together in a slight frown. 

"Well, it's like half an hour from the city centre." Eren nodded, chewing his lip lightly. 

Levi gave a small grunt at that and closed his eyes again. "So you are a kid." He commented. 

"No." Eren sighed, rolling his eyes at him. "I'm in my last year. I graduate soon." 

"What you studying?" Levi humoured him, still thinking of him as a brat. 

"Law." Eren told him with a small smile. 

"Really?" Levi raised an eyebrow at that, it taking him a little bit by surprise. "Fuck that." He mumbled, mostly to himself. The comment earnt a laugh of understanding from the brunet though. 

The conversation flowed quite nicely between the two men. They talked about everything and nothing, really. He was pretty sure they pissed off a lot of people as he overheard a few ask for earplugs. Not that he cares, he was quite enjoying the chatter. Levi learnt that Eren was planning on becoming either a lawyer or a solicitor. Both careers would happily get Eren loaded, but the way the brat spoke about it, Levi could tell he wasn't in it for the money. Which was actually nice to see. There was no point in going into a job that you hated, even if it got you a shit tonne of money. 

Levi also learnt that Eren lived with his best friend, someone called Arin or something. He didn't pay too much attention as he was half asleep, but he didn't hate learning about the brat as much as he normally would with people. Apparently he just shared a two bedroom apartment with him. It was meant to be them two and his sister, but he explained that she went to a different university to do sports. It made sense, people moved away all the time. 

The raven shared some of his own life with Eren. Just simple facts. Like how he worked in his friend's company doing foreign relations, meaning he could speak more than just French. It was just him and Isabel living in an apartment in the middle of Toronto. No wife, no girlfriend and Levi made sure to say no boyfriend. 

They talked through the majority of the flight while the other passengers slept, keeping their voices to a minimum to try and not disturb people. It probably didn't work, but even Levi knew that most people wore headphones these days to drown other people out. 

Levi ended up drifting off into a light sleep first, still holding Isabel close to his chest. His jacket was keeping the both of them warm enough, and Isabel was like a little furnace anyway. It was as comfortable as sleeping in a plane could be with a three year old on your lap. 

He didn't wake up until he felt someone shoving at his shoulder gently. Levi jumped slightly awake and looked around sleepily, squinting at the brunet who was staring at him. They were starting to come down to begin to land, which meant they all had to put their seatbelts on and whatnot. It was easy to get Isabel in her own seat, being as gentle as he could possibly be to not wake her up, however still keeping his arm around her so she was still snuggling into him. As long as she was strapped in and safe, that was all he cared about. 

Levi dozed off slightly again, slipping in and out of sleep as they landed. The brunet was rambling on again beside him, obviously not as tired as he was. Which was surprising seeing as they both got little sleep on the plane. 

When the plane had finally landed Levi sat still, waiting for everyone to get their things and for it to calm down. He tried waking Isabel up gently, but she was out like a light. It simply meant getting their things would be a lot harder. He left her asleep in the middle as he got down their hand luggage, placing it on his own chair. He got down Eren's luggage too seeing as Isabel was keeping him trapped up against the window. The brat was being a little too cautious around her, not wanting to wake her up too early. 

Getting off was a little bit of a struggle. Levi being the soft parent that he was left Isabel sleeping. He was a bit exhausted. Their flight had been at nine pm, meaning they landed in Toronto at four am. Luckily their apartment wasn't too far away from the airport, around about fourty minutes drive. Levi didn't mind paying for the taxi, not wanting to risk driving while being tired. But coming in at four meant that he could have a few hours before Isabel would more than likely want to get up. 

Carrying his hand luggage, Isabel's small backpack and Isabel snuggly on his hip, he only just managed to juggle all of it as they headed out of the plane and into the terminal. He ended up walking with Eren, the raven mostly remaining quiet while Eren chatted away. He just left him to it, it waking him up a little enough. They passed through customs without a bother, showing his and Isabel's passport and visa before waiting for Eren on the other side. 

They had to wait about ten minutes for the hold luggage to start showing up on the conveyer belt. During this time the brat was surprisingly quiet. Levi joked that he was giving his ears a rest. They collected their hold luggage, Eren offering to take Levi's for him seeing as he already had a lot of stuff to carry along with Isabel. He was about to refuse until he realised he didn't really have another hand to carry the suitcase that held all of his and Isabel's belongings. 

When they headed into the arrivals part Levi paused by the side, Eren following him. He set down all of his bags on the seat and turned to Isabel. 

"Hey, Izzy babe?" Levi whispered softly, gently bouncing her to try and wake her up. "We have to go now." 

Isabel just mumbled in his arms and snuggled closer to Levi. She wrapped his arms around his neck and yawned into his neck. 

"You don't have to wake her up." Eren said with a small smile, shaking his head. "Honestly, it's probably better for you if she sleeps." He said with a quiet laugh. 

Levi gave a small grunt at that and nodded. "Probably. Doubt I could wake her anyway." He sighed. "She's a nightmare on a morning with waking up." He said, looking back to Eren. 

Eren gave him a soft smile, amusement clear on his face at the idea of Levi trying to wake a sleepy Isabel up. It was very cute, to Eren. 

"So-" Eren started, looking around as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "You sure as hell made my flight a lot more interesting." He continued, looking back to the raven. "If it's not too weird, can I get your number?" 

Levi was a little surprised at that. He raised an eyebrow at the brunet, not thinking he'd want to continue speaking to him after this. They were just two strangers who had just meant. Sure, they spoke the entire plane ride, bar an hour where Levi napped. But even the raven had to admit, Eren made his flight a lot more interesting too. 

"Trust you to creep on old men." Levi teased with a sigh, however held his free hand out for Eren's phone. 

The brunet's face practically lit up with a grin. He got it out of his pocket and unlocked it for him before handing it over. Levi took the time to open up his contacts and typed in his number as quick as he could with one hand. 

"What can I say, the oldies are the best to creep on." Eren replied. 

Levi flicked his eyes up to Eren with a small glare before double checking his number. He handed his phone back to Eren with a sigh. "If you annoy me I'm fucking blocking your number." He warned. 

Eren simply smirked at the raven, which was a little unsettling to him. 

Eren was nice enough to help Levi get his things into a taxi, Levi even offering to share one with him but the brat refused. Apparently his friend was coming to pick him up, however was running late as the plane landed a little early than planned. 

Levi thanked Eren again before getting into the taxi, teling the taxi driver his address. As the car drove off, Levi looked out the window and watched Eren wave to the car, half hoping that the idiot would actually call him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "asseyez-vous." - Sit down
> 
> "Asseyez-vous et laisser l'homme seul." - Sit down and leave the man alone.
> 
> "je veux voir!" - I want to see.
> 
> "Non, je ne vais pas vous raconter à nouveau." - No, I'm not going to tell you again.
> 
> "Bien sûr. Le gars mignon est l'allemand." - Of course. The cute guy is German.


	2. Home time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Isabel settle back into their flat after their trip and Levi calls his over active friend

Levi held onto Isabel the entire ride home in the taxi. He was very glad that the driver didn't try and make conversation. There was nothing more that he hated than awkward small talk with taxi drivers. He rarely got taxis, but he hated public transport even more. 

When they pulled up to his apartment block Levi paid the driver before getting his luggage. He only just managed to juggle everything, placing his hand luggage ontop of the suitcase and managing that way. 

Isabel was still flat out, luckily enough. She needed her sleep, and he didn't want to risk her waking up now and not being able to get back to sleep. 

They lived on the seventh floor in this apartment block, and it wasn't too bad. Levi quite liked it. It wasn't massive, but it wasn't tiny. Enough for his little family. He had decorated it more minimalistic and always kept it clean, so it looked a lot better than it actually was. They had two bedrooms, two bathrooms and an open plan living and kitchen area. Isabel's room had previously been his study, but of course the minute she came into his life he had changed it around. 

Instead of an office he simply had a desk in his bedroom for whenever he worked from home. Isabel would often sit on his bed and play with her toys whenever he done that. 

It was minimalistic and although it used to be a lot more clinical looking, as his friend Hanji would say, since Isabel came along it had gotten a lot more homely. He had stuck up a few pictures of her and even one with him and a few friends. He had her pictures that she drew up on the fridge with a few kiddie magnets, and although he kept her toys tidy, there was always the odd one scattered about or a dummy lying around. 

Levi decided to leave the unpacking for the morning and took Isabel straight to her bed. He tucked her in and made sure she had her cuddly toy close before leaving her to sleep. He pretty much immediately passed out in his own bed, letting sleep take him. He was happy to be home after travelling, but fuck he was tired. 

 

-x- 

 

"Isabel, come get your breakfast." Levi called from the kitchen, getting out the freshly warmed pastries from the oven. 

"Papa-" Isabel called back, her voice a little wobbly. 

He had known she was awake due to her clumping about, so had started breakfast pretty early when he woke up. But that voice was not a happy voice. 

"Papa." She called again with another sniffle. 

Setting down the baking tray, Levi made sure the oven was turned off before going to see her. "What?" He sounded as he poked his head into her room. 

His expression immediately softened as she was standing next to her bed, eyes watering with fresh tears and her sheets pulled back. She had wet the bed again during her sleep, and she must know how much her papa likes things clean by now. She had tried to pulled the covers off to help tidy it, but had gotten it all stuck. 

This wasn't the first time Isabel had wet the bed during the night. It was common in kids her age. She just got embarrassed by it, and sure she often wore night nappies to avoid this and the tears. She felt a lot better when she wore them. But he had been reluctant to wake her up. 

"Hey Chéri," Levi spoke softly and moved over to her. "Don't cry silly, it's okay." He said and crouched down beside her. 

"'m sorry papa-" She started crying, a small hiccup halfway through. 

"It's okay." Levi spoke softly, hating seeing her cry. He knew that he was a germaphobe, and liked a clean apartment. But he never wanted it to affect his daughter like this. That was what he hated. 

He always let her make a mess in the place, whether it was with playdough or paint. Sometimes she'd even drag mud back through the apartment after being at the park. And that was okay. Mess like that could be cleaned up, and she was a child. She was allowed to be messy and have a proper childhood. 

Isabel just got embarrassed whenever she wet the bed, because she knew that her papa didn't do it so couldn't understand why she done it. 

"How about you have a nice bubble bath while I change your sheets yeah?" He spoke softly, kissing her forehead. 

Isabel gave a little sniffle and nodded, rubbing her eyes harshly with her little fists. Levi gently took her hands and pulled them away from her eyes so she didn't hurt herself. Afterwards, he gently undone her dungarees and any buttons she had. 

"You get changed into your special nightie while I run your bath." He told her softly, kissing her forehead gently. 

Isabel gave a small nod again and moved to do just that. 

 

-x- 

 

Isabel was sitting at their little breakfast table, eating her breakfast in peace. The radio was on and it was fairly sunny for winter, and it was mornings like this that Levi loved. 

They had gotten Isabel all cleaned up in the bath and Levi had changed her bedsheets, putting on some Peppa Pig ones for her to cheer her up a little. She was eating her mixed fruit and yoghurt for breakfast, and had a treat of a croissant with chocolate for when she'd finished it all. 

Levi was currently standing in the kitchen, leaning against the counter and pausing his breakfast while he spoke on the phone. His close friend Hanji had called him to make sure he made it home okay, and he was surprised she didn't barge her way over this morning. 

"No the flight home wasn't too bad. Izzy didn't kick up much of a fuss." Levi told her, picking at his nails lightly. 

_"That's surprising. Didn't she not kick off on the way there?"_

"Yeah." Levi sighed, thinking back. The flight to France had been down right exhausting. It had been her first long flight, and she hated it. The way home was completely different. She loved it. "But we were sat next to some brat who she liked and he kept her company." 

_"Oh really? Like another kid or?"_ Hanji asked, the faint sound of typing in the background. 

"No." Levi snorted. "Like some uni student brat. He was quite good with her actually." He told her. 

_"And?_

"And what?" Levi frowned slightly. 

_"Sounds like theres an and coming. What was this uni student like Levi?"_ She teased lightly. 

Levi rolled his eyes at her, but indulged anyway. "And there's nothing more to it." He told her. "He helped me carry my things to the taxi, asked for my number then said goodbye." 

_"Go on you dog!"_ Hanji cackled. _"Did you give him it?_

"Of course I fucking did. He wasn't too bad on the eyes." Levi muttered quietly to her, being careful that Isabel didn't hear him swear. 

_"I didn't have you down as a cradle robber, Levi."_ Hanji teased with another laugh, the grin clear in her voice. _"Has he messaged you yet?"_

"He's only eight years younger." Levi muttered with a frown. "And no not yet. It's barely been a day Hanji give the kid a chance." He shook his head. 

Though he felt like that was something Hanji should be telling him. All morning he had been subconsciously checking his phone for a missed call or a new message. None had come through, and he just had to remind himself that he was probably still asleep. 

_"How exciting."_ Hanji teased. _"Who would've thought that when you went away on holiday you would come back with a lover._ " She grinned, earning a chuckle out of Levi. 

"He is far from a lover, you turd. He's just some brat that I met on the plane, nothing more. He's too young for me anyway." Levi told her, shaking his head. 

Levi moved and started putting away the chopping board and cleaning the kitchen up a little more. 

_"Whatever happened to 'he's just eight years younger?'"_ Hanji laughed. _"I better be invited to the wedding."_

"You won't be invited to fuck all if you continue the way you are." Levi threatened, shaking his head at her comments. 

_"That's no way to talk to your best friend!"_

Levi grunted in reply, moving around the kitchen slowly. 

"I'll talk to you however I damn please." He muttered down the phone. 

_"Okay then Mr Grumpy Guts, have fun trying to win over your boy toy."_

Levi sighed at her and rolled his eyes, knowing fine well he'd never live this down. Half of him was hoping the brat wouldn't call just so he could get a break from her teasing. Though he didn't mind it too much. Despite what he said, she was right about being his best friend. 

"Yeah yeah, I'll see you tomorrow." 

_"Keep me updated!"_ Hanji called down the phone, only just managing to finish before Levi hung up on her. 

Checking his phone one last time, he locked it and set it down on the side before joining Isabel for breakfast. 

Hopefully the brunet wouldn't keep him waiting too long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry that eren wasnt in this chapter but he'll be in the next one.
> 
> thanks for reading!:)


	3. Awkward meetings.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi meets eren in an unexpected place, we meet some of Eren's friends who push him more towards the raven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha i realised my maths was wrong in the last chapter, sorry its fixed now
> 
> Eren is 22 and Levi is nearly 30, there's 8 years different :)

A good two weeks had passed and Levi finally gave up on expecting a call or even a text. It was clear Eren wasn’t going to contact him by now, and although he was a bit disappointed, he didn't let himself get too down over it. Sure, they spent pretty much a full seven hours talking, but that was it. Eren clearly wasn't wanting to stay in contact. 

It wouldn't bother him as much if Isabel didn’t keep on asking where Eren was and when they would see him again. She had taking quite the liking to him after playing with him on the plane. Levi tried to explain that Eren was busy and wouldn't be able to come and play with her anytime soon. He was only hoping she'd soon forget about him. 

When the weekend rolled around Levi decided to take Isabel out rather than stay cooped up inside. Going out would do the both of them some good. It was an okay day for winter, not too cold if you wrapped up but still obviously winter. 

Levi had taken Isabel around town before heading into the city library to take out some books for her. She loved story books, and while Levi would happily buy some for her, she tended to pick a lot to read only to end up getting bored half way through and hating them. This way was much better, especially for his bank account. He let Isabel out of her buggy to roam around, making sure to stay close. 

They stayed in the kids section, Isabel picking up all kinds of books for Levi to flick through and deem appropriate. Of course they would be, being in the kids section. But he still liked to check. She went a little overboard, meaning Levi had to slip back a few that he knew she would end up disliking. He only had so much space in the buggy to carry books. 

Isabel didn't often use the buggy, but when they went on big days out and walked to town instead of taking his car, she needed it. It was more in case she got tired and wanted to sit down. Levi was strong and worked out, but even he couldn't carry a three year old plus shopping for most of the day. 

After the kids section Levi took her to the business section as he wanted to take a few books out himself. He let Isabel have a little explore, making sure he could at least see her a little. She liked to pretend to be an adult by trying to pick out some books for her papa, but of course she couldn't read any. The library wasn't too full, luckily, a lot of people taking books out themselves or sitting at desks. It surprisingly wasn't too loud either, a few groups of students here and there. It wasn't until Isabel gave a happy squeal and ran off that Levi got concerned. 

"Isabel!" Levi frowned, placing the books on the seat of the buggy. 

He followed after her immediately, rounding a corner of one of the book isles. 

"Homme d'avion!" Isabel squealed as she ran towards a group of students. 

They were sat at a round table full of books and pens. There was a fair group of them, all joking on and obviously taking a break. And of course, the one student sat in his line of eyesight just happened to be the same brown haired brat that had been plaguing his thoughts for the past two weeks. 

"E-ren!" Isabel squealed, earning the attention of the group as she ran straight to Eren's side. 

The whole group pretty much looked confused, all giving Eren a weird look as he grinned down to Isabel. Levi was hot on her tail, pushing the buggy over to her. 

"Well hello missy!" Eren grinned widely, pushing his chair back slightly. 

Isabel took that as a sign that she could join him at the table and started trying to get up on his lap. "'iya!" 

"Isabel," Levi sighed, frowning. 

"It's okay." Eren looked up at Levi and laughed. 

Gently, Eren scooped Isabel up and sat her on his lap, facing the rest of the table. Though she squirmed a little in his lap to turn and face him a little more. 

"Papa! Homme d'avion!" She squealed again, poking Eren's cheek with a wide grin. 

"Oui," Levi sighed as he reached Eren's side. 

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your new family, Eren?" One of the other brats sounded. 

"Shut up, horseface." 

"Horsie!" Isabel looked around, clapping a few times happily. 

It sent the table into a small laugh, all but the one Eren had aimed the insult at. 

"This is Levi," Eren started, nodding to Levi. "And this little girl is Izzy." 

"Oh, are these who you met on the plane?" A blond spoke up. He had a hairstyle like a mushroom, if you asked Levi. 

"Yeah." Eren grinned. "Levi, this is Armin who I told you about." Eren nodded to the blond. 

"Then that's Jean, Christa, Sasha, Connie and Reiner." Eren introduced them with a smile. 

The students all waved when their names were said. Levi simply gave a grunt and a small nod in hello as a reply. 

"Papa said, said that you were too busy to come see us-" Isabel told Eren, looking up at him with wide eyes. 

Eren visibly cringed, his expression turning to a more guilty one. "Why'd you tell her that?" He asked Levi, glancing up to him. 

"Why'd you never call?" Levi snapped back, relaxing a little and resting an arm on the top of the buggy. "People tend to call within five working days when they ask for your number, brat." 

The brunet sighed and looked back down to Isabel, biting his lip. "Yeah, sorry. I don't really have an excuse." He admitted. "Sorry Izzy. Do you think your papa will ever forgive me?" He asked her cheekily, his face breaking into a soft grin. 

"You, you are forgived!" Isabel told him with a wide grin and a nod. 

"Forgiven, chéri." Levi corrected softly. "And no, he is not 'forgived'." 

"Forgiven!" Isabel nodded, both correcting Levi and stating once again that Eren was forgiven. 

"I deserved that one." Levi grumbled to himself, earning a soft laugh from Eren. 

"Wait wait wait-" One of the girls spoke up, Sasha, and looked between Eren and Levi. "Eren you didn't call back a Frenchman? What is wrong with you!" She asked, her hand currently frozen in a bag of opened crisps. 

"Yeah Eren, it's not like you to not call someone." The tall blond called Reiner agreed with a smirk. 

"You're all trying to dig me into a bigger hole aren't you?" Eren glared at them. 

"I think you dug your own hole deep enough when you stood him up." The horseface spoke up. 

"Hey, I didn't stand him up." Eren snapped at him. 

Isabel was preoccupied shuffling around Eren's papers on the desk, trying to find something to play with. 

"I just didn't call." He finished quietly, looking down to Isabel. He picked up a pen for her and offered her a fresh bit of paper for her to start drawing. 

"Yeah but he's French!" Sasha spoke around her crisps. 

"You have a thing for French people now?" Connie asked her with a laugh. 

"French! From Europe! European!" Sasha continued, looking between Connie and Eren. 

"I'm German you don't have that reaction to me." Eren pointed out with a laugh. 

"That's because your face is already enough to drive people away." Jean commented. 

Sasha was the one to roll her eyes at Jean and continued, ignoring his comment. "That's because you barely have an accent now. Levi has an accent- and a French one!" She nodded. "Your accent is gorgeous." She told Levi. 

"Merci." Levi said with a smirk, looking back at her. 

Sasha gave a small groan and continued to stuff her mouth full of more crisps. 

"Just to remind you your boyfriend is sitting right next to you." Connie told her, though it was clear he was amused. 

"We could have a threesome." She spoke around her crisps, looking between them. 

"Sasha there's a child at the table don't talk about that stuff." Reiner told her off. 

"Don't worry, Jean has to learn about this stuff sooner or later." Eren joked with a cheeky grin. 

Jean himself gave a fake laugh and leant over the table to hit his arm. The action just made Eren laugh even more. 

They were good friends, Eren and Jean, despite all of their bickering. They had known each other for years now, and Eren would class Jean as a close friend of his. They went through a period of time not speaking and constantly fighting, but now Eren would go to Jean for advice just as much as he would go to Armin. 

"Well it's been nice seeing you again brat, but I have to go take a shit." Levi said as he stood up straighter. 

"Papa!" Isabel pointed the pen at him with a frown. "Bad word!" She told him off, Eren grinning widely at the action. 

"Papa's bad isn't he." Eren egged her on with a nod. 

"Ya." She nodded with him, looking between them. 

"I know sorry chéri. Come on, say goodbye to everyone so we can go get food." Levi sighed. 

Honestly Levi was in a bit of a mood with Eren. The brat clearly didn't want anything to do with him, even after asking for his number and everything. So yeah, it pissed him off a little bit. 

"But- papa can we not stay?" Isabel asked him with wide eyes. 

"No, cheri, Eren and his friends need to study hard. Like you do when you go to nursery." He told her softly, nodding. 

"I study too!" She claimed to him a little desperately, patting the sheet of paper in front of her. She drew a lot at nursery, so to her it was the same thing. 

"They're doing big kid work." 

"Are you saying Izzy isn't a big kid?" Eren gasped up at Levi. 

Isabel looked a little upset at that, looking between Eren and her papa. 

"Oi, brat, stop trying to set me up." Levi clicked his tongue at him, glaring daggers back at the brunet. "Of course I'm not-" 

"But, but you said." Isabel looked back at Eren with wide eyes again. "I can stay?" She asked again. 

"Ye-" 

"Eren." Reiner interrupted Eren, looking over and shaking his head at him. 

Levi liked that kid. At least he had some common sense to shut Eren up before he decked him one. He knew he was getting slightly riled up. He didn't know what Eren's intentions were trying to upset Isabel into wanting to stay more. 

"What?" Eren shrugged, looking back at Reiner. "I'm just trying to get Izzy and her hot dad to stay a little longer, don't bite my head off." The brunet huffed, looking down to Isabel's drawing. 

"What?" Levi frowned. 

Eren's comments sent Sasha off into a laugh, for once her covering her mouth as she leant her head back. 

"Typical." Jean scoffed at him. "Now you're using kids that aren't even yours to pick up dads." He shook his head at him. 

"What?" Isabel half whined, losing track completely at what was going on in the conversation. Levi himself was a little confused, getting completely mixed signals from the brunet. Was he flirting now? Calling him hot? Yet he couldn't even pick up the phone. God it pissed him off even more. 

"Eren's trying to steal your papa." Sasha leant over the table slightly to stage whisper to her. 

Isabel gasped at that and widened her eyes. She shook her head and looked to Eren. "No!" She pouted, twisting on his lap. "No E-ren no!" She told him, patting his chest lightly with her little hand. 

Eren simply laughed softly and smiled. "Don't worry Izzy, I'm sure we can share him can't we?" 

"Excuse me, brat." Levi scoffed. 

Eren ignored him and continued looking to Isabel softly, trying to get back on her good side. 

"No!" Isabel shook her head again. 

"I don't think Isabel likes the idea of you kidnapping her dad." Armin spoke up with a laugh, looking up from his books to add his comments. 

"Of course she wouldn't." Reiner looked over to Sasha. "You shouldn't have said that." 

"Yeah Sasha," Connie spoke up. "Kids take these things seriously, you know." He said patronisingly, earning a sharp slap on the arm from Sasha. 

"At least I don't steal sweets from kids!" She retorted, sticking her tongue out at him. 

"That was for you!" Connie claimed. "You weren't complaining when you were eating them!" 

"Well still!" Sasha hummed back at him, shaking her head just as patronising. 

"Jesus Christ you're all a bunch of brats." Levi muttered under his breath. 

He rubbed his forehead lightly, feeling the start of a headache coming on. Yeah, what started as a good day was slowly getting worse. 

"Then why're you still here?" Eren asked cheekily, looking up at Levi finally with a smirk. 

"Because you're stealing my daughter!" Levi snapped back at him, cheeks flushing ever so slightly. 

Eren laughed at him and was about to reply before Isabel patted his chest again. 

"No no E-ren." She shook her head at him, earning his attention. "Stealing is bad." She told him. 

"Oh yeah." Eren nodded back at her. He paused and tilted his head, thinking and giving a loud humming noise as he did. "Okay then, how about you're the only missy in his life, and I'm the only mister?" Eren asked her with a soft grin. "You can be his princess and I can be his prince?" He asked. 

Levi rolled his eyes at the comment, but Isabel had the complete opposite reaction. She grinned widely and nodded at that idea happily. 

"Oui!" She giggled, settling back on his lap a little more. 

"There we go, all sorted." Eren said to the group with a firm nod. 

"So what does that make me, genius?" Levi asked Eren, his expression more unimpressed than anything. 

To Levi, he wouldn't be seeing Eren again after this. He obviously didn't want to see him after not calling for two weeks, so why was he encouraging his daughter so much? 

"You could be the Queen." Connie piped up with a laugh. "That way Eren would be your King rather than prince." He encouraged Eren on, the brunet giving a wide smirk. 

"That would be even more hilarious if he was gay." Reiner piped up, looking up at Levi. 

Levi raised an eyebrow back at him, currently taking back his thought of him before. He didn't like him anymore. He was just as much of a brat as the rest of them. It was obviously a ploy to get him to say if he was gay or not. 

"Queenie." Isabel nodded in agreement with Connie. 

Sighing, Levi stood up straighter. "Well this 'Queenie' has got places to be and things to eat. Izzy-" Levi nodded for her to get down. "Come on." 

"But-" 

"Oh wow Izzy!" Sasha interrupted with a gasp. It earnt her attention with wide eyes. "You're going to eat? Well then Queenie should treat Princess Izzy to a proper feast shouldn't he?" She prompted. 

Isabel gave a small nod and a quiet 'ya' before looking up to Levi expectantly. 

"Yes that's where we're going. To a God damn feast." Levi sighed as he ran his hand through his head. "Say goodbye." He told her. 

Nodding, Isabel gave Eren a hug before wiggling off him. 

"That-" She leant up and pointed to her picture. "For you." She told him, pointing to Eren with a blush. 

She ran to Levi's side, who took her hand as the brat picked up the piece of paper. 

"Thank you very much." Eren grinned at her softly. 

"Bye bye!" Isabel said once more, waving as she looked over her shoulder to the group. 

The group all said goodbye and waved back at her, Levi giving his own small nod. He purposely didn't nod towards Eren, because he wanted to rile the brat up like he had him. But with Isabel, he took the books to the reception to take them out so they could go get food. 

-EREN- 

Eren watched Levi as he walked off with Isabel, only just managing to hold back the sigh. He had fucked up by not calling that man, he honestly had. One thing just came after the other and before he knew it two weeks had passed. He had been sticking his nose in his books trying to study. He was in his last year now, and he may have gotten away with half arsing his first few years, but he couldn't do that this year. 

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Jean spoke up, raising his eyebrows at Eren. "He's fit as fuck and he willingly gave you his number and you don't call him?" 

Eren let out the groan as he leant back in his chair, shaking his head at him. "He has a child, I doubt he's even gay." 

"Gay people can have children too, Eren." Reiner pointed out, tapping his pen on the table lightly. "And he played along with being called a Queen." 

"Yeah so what? He was just keeping his daughter happy, and Isabel's mother might still be in the picture." 

"Eren," Armin started, looking over to him. "Stop making excuses. He gave you his number, so he obviously wanted to see more of you." He told him. 

Eren hated the fact that Armin was right. That all of his friends were right. Honestly he didn't know why he didn't call. Eren had loved their flight and learning about the other man. He had even loved spending time with Isabel, and surprisingly enough the fact that Levi had a child didn't put him off. Far from it, really. 

"What's got you like this?" Jean asked his friend with a frown. 

"What do you mean?" Eren replied, frowning straight back at him. 

"Come on you turd. The past few years you've always been set on pulling guys and shit. Don't tell me you're finally growing up?" 

"Oh fuck off, horseface." Eren snapped with a sigh. "It's not like I can just pull him, fuck him then fuck off can I? He has a child." He pointed out. 

"Again with the child thing!" Sasha threw her hands up with a sigh. "Izzy is adorable!" 

"Exactly!" Eren responded. "Exactly! Kids get attached easily and shit. It'd be unfair to do that to her." He tried with a shrug. 

"What's this? Eren Jaeger is thinking of other people?" Connie gasped. "Sasha! I think the apocalypse is coming on!" He looked to Sasha, gripping her hand tightly. 

Sasha gripped back just as tight, her face in fake desperation. "Oh Connie! Our baby boy is growing up!" She cried before the two broke into laughter. 

Eren glared at the pair of them before sighing. Honestly Eren didn't want to just fuck Levi and never see him again. Sure, he'd had sex before and he was a flirt, but he rarely slept around just for the sex. He flirted with everyone, that was in his nature. But the extra cute ones? He'd always go out of his way for. And Levi was cute. He was fucking hot. 

Which was the problem. Flirting often got him in trouble with people. With guys and girls that wouldn't catch on that was just how he was. His friends knew that he was like that, so when he flirted with Sasha or even Reiner they'd just brush it off and joke along. Other people got feelings and got attached, and Eren would lead people on without realising it. It was shitty of him, he knew that. He just couldn't help it. 

In the past he had been a bit of a douche with it. He had used it to his advantage when people would confess that they'd want to be with him. He'd sleep with them then fuck off onto the next person. He wasn't like that now, far from it, but he had earnt the reputation at the start of uni for it. Luckily he was straying away from that now. That's why he was holding back so much with Levi. He didn't want to just lead him on or have Levi think he was just leading him on. 

The chat on the plane – he hardly flirted. They got on like a house on fire. They got on very well. Then he had to go and fuck up by not calling back. Levi was different. He was interesting and fuck, he wanted to get to know him better. Get to know Isabel better too. Which was why he really didn't want to fuck up more. He simply hid behind the flirting because that's what he knew best. 

Sighing again, Eren looked down at the picture Isabel gave him. 

"Stop huffing and puffing. You're blowing my papers everywhere." Jean grumbled. 

Eren ignored him and picked up the drawing. It was adorable. It was mostly just squiggles, but he could make most of it out. It looked like Eren was standing with Isabel in the middle, and they were either in a forest or a park. Eren couldn't tell. 

On one of the squiggles that Eren deemed to be a slide, Levi was standing on top of. It was quite funny, because he was the same height as Isabel was. 

"You should go after him." Christa sounded up with a soft smile, earning Eren's attention. 

"Oh yeah!" Sasha grinned, nodding. "That would be super romantic!" 

"He's taking Izzy to eat, I doubt he'd want me to tag along." Eren frowned, placing the paper down. He rested his head on his hand, looking around at his friends. He'd much prefer to be there with Levi than here studying. 

"Yeah but you've already fucked up. Calling him after today won't go down well." Sasha said with a firm nod. 

Biting his lip, Eren mulled over the idea for a few moments. He did want to continue seeing Levi, that he definitely wanted to do. But he had already fucked it up, like Sasha said. He had no excuse for not calling him. 

"It's easier to apologise in person than it is over the phone, Eren." Christa said with a smile. 

"Yeah, you're right." Eren groaned, running a hand through his hair and pushing it back. "Fuck, I don't know-" 

"Eren." Armin looked to his best friend. "Shut up and just go after him already." 

Eren paused and mulled it over. God, his friends were always right. "Fuck it." He muttered and stood up. 

Eren started packing up all of his things, stuffing his books and his papers into his bag. Sasha started cheering at him, even Connie joining in as he rushed to pack up. Hopefully they wouldn't be too long gone and he'd be able to catch them. 

"Go get him!" Sasha clapped, grinning as Eren zipped up his bag and threw it over his shoulder. 

"I'll see yous later." He grinned before rushing off. 

He ignored all the calls and shouts from his friends, finding it more embarrassing than anything. It was nice, at least they were encouraging. He rarely got to see them all together like this. They went to different universities, hence why they meet up at the city library and not the uni library. It meant that they could actually meet up and stay in contact. He missed them a lot of the time, so to have them cheering him on was nice. 

Eren practically ran out of the library. When he couldn't see the raven at the reception he knew that he'd left the building, which mean it would be a lot harder to catch him. 

Fuck. 

Once he exited the library, Eren looked around on the street. He stayed out of people's way, but he had absolutely no idea what direction Levi would've gone in. There were food places all over, he could literally be anywhere. 

"Fuck," Eren muttered under his breath, looking around and using his height to his advantage. 

The brunet was about to give up before he heard the telltale squeal of Isabel. Thank fuck that child was so excitable. 

Looking in the direction of the sound, he spotted little Isabel on her father's shoulders. She was holding onto his hair as Levi held onto her foot with one hand and the buggy with the other. 

"Levi-" Eren called, rushing past a few people to make his way over. 

When the raven continued on walking he didn't let up. 

"Levi."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Homme d'avion!" - Aeroplane man.
> 
> Thanks for reading!<3


	4. Fake date #1.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren intrudes on levi and isabel's day out and the two learn more about each other

At first Levi thought he was hearing things. He ignored the call of his name, guessing it was just Isabel chatting shit again on his shoulders. 

When he heard it the second time, he paused and moved to the side of the path next to the building and out of the way. He turned around and watched Eren run towards him, and to say he was confused was an understatement. The fuck was he doing. 

"E-ren!" Isabel clapped happily, causing Levi to grip onto her foot a little tighter so she didn't fall. 

"Hey." Eren panted slightly as he slowed down his running. "Jesus I need to work out more." Eren joked with a laugh as he caught his breath. 

Levi just raised an eyebrow at him and paused, watching him. Isabel went back to gripping his hair lightly, which he didn't mind too much. At least she was out of her pulling phase. 

"Can I help you, brat?" Levi questioned eventually. 

"Well," Eren gave a sloppy grin and nodded. "I was wondering if you wanted some company?" He asked a little softly. 

"No, we're fine thanks." Levi scoffed and turned away from him. 

"Wait-" Eren grabbed his arm gently to stop him from moving. "I know I f- messed up. I'm sorry, one day turned into three and then before I knew it, it was like a week later and too much time had passed. Really, I'm sorry." Eren tried explaining. 

Levi looked up at Eren and gave a small sigh at his explanation, understanding but still. It annoyed him. He had spent the past two weeks waiting. And waiting. And waiting. For what? Fuck all. 

"I said we're fine." Levi repeated himself, glaring up at the brunet. 

Pulling his arm out from Eren's grip, he turned away and headed off down the street again. Isabel was babbling away to him, talking about God knows what. He failed to notice the brunet following him until he came up to a crossing and had to pause for the lights to change. Eren had came up beside him, giving Isabel a wide grin. 

"I thought I told you not to stalk old men?" Levi snapped at him. 

"I'm gonna make it up to you." Eren told him. "You're too hot to not at least try." The younger male shrugged. 

The comment took Levi back a little bit, not expecting him to be so honest. He simply shook his head at him and started crossing the road when the green man sounded. 

"Where are we eating?" Eren asked him. 

"Are you still following me?" 

"I told you, I'm gonna make it up to you. Aren't I Izzy?" Eren grinned and gently tickled her side. 

Isabel squealed happily on Levi's shoulders, moving a hand to try and slap Eren away. "No!" She giggled. 

"So," Eren looked down to the raven. "Where are we eating?" He asked again. 

Levi gave a small sigh in defeat as he continued on walking, only just managing to keep Isabel securely on his shoulders. "This local burger place I know." Levi told him. 

That made Eren grin, the fact that Levi wasn't trying to push him away still. Levi was a little shocked at Eren. Shocked that he came after him and, well, was he flirting? Levi couldn't fully tell, but he let the brunet join them anyway. 

When they reached the place Levi was on about he set Isabel down gently. They headed inside and got a small booth for the three of them. They left the buggy at the side and Isabel had her cuddly toy securely in her arms. 

They settled down in the booth, Isabel next to Levi and Eren across from him. The waitress brought over some menus for them and took their drink orders. Isabel had the kids menu of course, but Levi would probably end up picking for her. 

"So how come you were at the library today?" Eren asked the older male as they looked over the menus. 

"Picked up some books for Izzy." Levi explained, not looking up at him. "Don't you not have a uni library you can reek havoc in?" He scoffed at him. 

Eren just laughed at him and shrugged. "Yeah, but not all my friends go to Toronto uni. It's nicer to just meet up there and it's not full of other students." He explained. 

Levi gave a small grunt at that and nodded. It made sense, really. 

"What are you thinking of having, Izzy?" Levi asked her, looking down at the kids menu. 

"Nug nugs!" Isabel claimed, pointed to the name she had decided. 

"You always have that though." Levi commented with a small frown. "Do you want to try something else?" He asked softly. 

"Hmm." Isabel put her hand on her chin and leant back down to read the menu. 

"What about some nice pasta?" Eren suggested, looking over with a grin. He set his own menu down after deciding what he wanted and focused on the two in front of him. 

"Ya!" Isabel grinned and nodded. "Pasta." She told Levi, looking up at him. 

Levi let out a small hum and looked up at Eren. He raised an eyebrow at him, just giving him quite a weird look. 

"What?" Eren asked, slightly panicking in case he had done something wrong. 

"You should eat with us more often if you can try and get her to eat new foods." He commented, shaking his head at him. 

Eren just broke out into a wide grin at that, leaning forward on the table. "Are you asking me out on another date?" 

"Another one?" Levi raised his other eyebrow at him. "This isn't a date, brat. This is you barging your way into mine and my daughters dinner." He claimed. 

Eren just laughed again at him, a sound that Levi was getting quite used to. "It could be a date though." He wiggled his eyebrows at him. 

"Ask me when I'm drunk." Levi scoffed at him, shaking his head. 

Eren grinned at the older male and sat back in his chair. Eren was definitely flirting with Levi, and the raven didn't know what to think about it. He definitely liked the brunet attraction wise. He was nice on the eyes, and Levi was about as straight as a rainbow. 

What confused him was the fact that he thought Eren was straight. He knew that he shouldn't just assume these things, but unfortunately society these days its 'straight until told otherwise'. Levi had gotten into too much trouble in the past assuming people were gay and it ending in a fight and people being straight up homophobes. 

"Papa-" Isabel patted Levi's arm. "What's, what's pasta in Français?" She asked him quietly. 

Levi was teaching her both French and English while she grew up. They often spoke English more, because she was constantly around it. But she was also very fluent in French, and he was very proud of her. Especially when she asked what certain words were for the other language. 

"Pâtes." Levi told her softly. 

"Pâtes-" She repeated after him with a wide grin. 

"Oui." Levi nodded at her. "And you are having-" He looked at the menu for what he knew she'd like most. He knew not to push his luck with _too_ much of a different style of food. "Pâtes à la bolognaise." He told her. 

Isabel gave a wide grin and looked back to the menu. She put her finger on the one she had chosen and dragged it along slowly as she read it out. "Pasta- pasta bolog-" She sounded it slowly. "Bolog- ne-see?" She tried. 

"Bolognese." Levi told her softly. 

"Pasta bologne-see!" She grinned. "Pâtes bologne-see." She nodded proudly. 

Levi softened his expression at her and gave a soft sigh. God he loved her so much. He would do anything for her really, and although it was a struggle being a single parent, it was worth it. 

"Izzy your French is so good. Just like papa's eh?" Eren said with a wide grin. 

"I should hope my French is good." Levi gave a small mumble, though a faint smirk was on his lips. 

"Ya!" Isabel grinned happily at being compared to her father, nodding at Eren. 

"Do you know what Pasta is in German?" He asked her quietly. 

Isabel gave a small shake of her head, looking back at Eren with wide eyes. 

"It's just Pasta." He said with a wide grin, earning a happy giggle from Isabel. 

"Pasta pasta." She nodded. "And, and pasta for me-" She pointed to the menu again. 

"Yeah." Eren smiled at her widely before looking to Levi. "Was she born in France too?" He asked him softly. 

"Yeah." Levi took a sip of his drink and nodded. "Moved out here pretty much straight after." He told him. 

"Oh. Did her mother not come with her?" He asked. Eren knew that it might be a risky subject to talk about, but he was curious. 

"No." Levi shook his head. "It's a bit complicated but no, she didn't." Levi said, looking back down to Isabel. 

"Sorry." Eren sounded again with a small smile. 

"It's fine, brat." Levi said, looking back to him. "So what made you move out here?" He asked in return. 

"Well we moved all over when I was younger." Eren said with a small grin, the mood going a bit lighter. "My dad was a doctor in the army and we got sent all over Europe. He got transferred to Canada's army, I'm not sure why I never asked actually, and we moved out here. When he retired from the army and started working in a hospital him and my mum moved back to Germany, while me and my sister stayed here." He smiled. 

"You not fancy going back there?" 

Eren shrugged at the question and hummed. "Not really. We had made friends here and I had already found the course I wanted. It just means I get holidays back in Germany." He said with a wide grin. 

"Fair enough." Levi said with a small smirk. 

The waitress came back over and took their orders. They fell into a natural conversation when their food arrived, surprisingly falling back into the same pace as on the plane. It was nice, actually. They already knew a lot about each other, so conversation flowed quite easily. 

They spoke about what had been going on the past two weeks. They spoke about the weather and normal stuff that was on the news. Isabel even joined in and told Eren what they were going to be doing for Christmas which was soon approaching. 

After they ate Eren demanded that they ordered some pudding, and with it being two against one, Levi had to agree. He didn't get one, but he had a sneaky feeling Eren had planned it. Eren ended up getting quite a large amount of waffle and ice cream which he told Levi he had to help him eat. Isabel had a little tub of ice cream and had a few bites of the waffle. 

When they were finished Eren had told Levi that he would pay. That he had forced himself in on their meal so it was only fair. Levi still refused to let him. The brat was a uni student, he definitely wouldn't have the money to spare to pay for a two meal course for three. Eren ended up managing to convince Levi to let him at least pay for Isabel, which Levi nearly threw a fit at because he wouldn't want him to feel forced to. But he agreed in the end. 

After the meal Levi explained that they were heading home. Isabel was back in her buggy and getting restless, obviously ready for a nap. She gave Eren a hug goodbye of course, and while the two adults spoke she fell asleep. 

Levi had teased Eren about probably not hearing from him for another two weeks, and although he knew he was joking, it stung a little. Eren assured him he'd message him the minute he got home. The raven was skeptical about it, but he'd give him another chance. 

About an hour after Levi got home himself and had gotten Isabel settled, sure enough his phone sounded. 

**[Eren] 18:34**

Hey grumpy, had a good time on our date;).


	5. Fake date #2.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> eren convinces levi to ditch work for an hour or so

**From:[Eren] 10:56**

come on, just scive 

 

**From:[Eren] 10:56**

dare ya 

 

**From:[Eren] 10:57**

live a little 

 

**To:[Eren] 11:00**

would you stop fucking texting me so much. 

 

**From:[Eren] 11:02**

Aw you love it really;) 

So see you in 5? 

 

**To:[Eren] 11:06**

I can't brat I'm working. 

 

**From:[Eren] 11:10**

Can't you not like, take an early break or something? :( 

 

**To:[Eren] 11:20**

Can't you not like, go bother someone else? 

 

 **From:[Eren] 11:21**

you shouldn’t be so mean to the only person that wants to spend time with you 

 

**To:[Eren] 11:24**

Then you shouldn't be such an annoying brat. 

 

**From:[Eren] 11:28**

I'll take that as a compliment ;D 

Ill wait for u on the benches? 

 

**To:[Eren] 11:31**

ffs brat give me 15 minutes. 

 

**From:[Eren] 11:35**

perfect! see you soon ;) 

 

Levi sighed as he pushed away from his computer. Of course he'd give in to the brat that easily. Of course he had no resolve when it came to him. In his mind, he was telling himself that it was easier to just give in and go or else eren would continue pestering him. But deep down he knew he just wanted to see the brat again. 

He had forgiven him for taking so long to text or call. Mostly because Eren wouldn't leave him alone now. Constantly messaging him or asking to meet up. However is the first time he agreed to meet up with him in the past two weeks that have passed. Meaning he was quite looking forward to seeing him again, even if he hated to admit it. 

Levi packed up most of his things and put on his coat. Since it was winter he also put on his thick blue scarf and leather gloves, just to be safe. The last thing he wanted was to catch a cold. Once he was sorted he grabbed his bag and headed to his boss' office. Well, he was one of his closest friends, but Erwin was technically still his boss. 

Erwin had started up this company from scratch, getting into the business market and growing from there. It was still a small company, but it was slowly picking up profit and becoming more and more successful. Erwin spent his life at the office recently to ensure it was a success. It was definitely paying off. Honestly, Erwin was one of the reasons he moved out to America. When he offered him a job in his company, albeit it was risky, it was still a job. Levi also invested some money towards it to help Erwin start it up, so he was getting some money back off that. He wasn't a partner and he didn't co-own anything, but the fact he helped meant he could have a bit of leeway here and there when he needed it. Like caring for Isabel, or taking an early lunch to meet a certain brat. 

Levi also worked very hard for the company, he quite enjoyed his work. Levi was in charge of foreign affairs, working with companies abroad and getting global business deals. Which was mainly because he could speak more than one language. 

"I'm going out for lunch." Levi popped his head through into Erwin's office. It was only 11:45am now, so it wasn't like he was taking a few hours early. 

"You're going out?" Erwin responded, shock evident in his voice. 

"Yeah. Taking an early lunch." Levi told him as he checked his watch. "I'll be back before one." He told him before turning on his heel and heading out. 

He'd rather avoid any questions from Erwin right now. He knew him better than everyone, and knew that Levi often ate while working. Not because he was a masochist or anything, but it meant that he could work at a leisurely pace without rushing to get it done before lunch or home time. Though he'd probably have to take some work home thanks to this. 

Not waiting for a response, Levi heading down and out of the building. He stuck his chin down further into his scarf as the cold air hit him, already hating the fact that Eren wanted to meet in a park. _A park._ In the middle of _winter._ The boy was mad. 

Deciding to walk instead of taking the car, he was lucky enough to work not too far away from the park Eren meant, he took a small detour and wound up in a small tea and coffee shop. Getting himself the usual black tea with two sugars, he ordered something that sounded disgustingly sweet for Eren. He remembered the brat saying that he had a sweet tooth, and if he didn't like it he could have his. 

It didn't take much longer to get to the park after he was given the two drinks. If anything they were warming his hands, so he didn't mind too much. He headed to the main part of the park that Eren said he'd meet him in. There was a large fountain in the middle, with benches all the way around facing the fountain. If anything, the cold water made the air even colder around the park. 

Noticing the mop of brown hair, Levi made his way over to Eren and sat down on the bench next to him. "You had to choose the fucking coldest place out here didn't you." 

"Oh-" Eren jumped slightly, taking his headphones out. "It's nicer here." He claimed with a lopsided grin. "You're late." 

"I picked us up drinks." Levi offered him the right one, nodding to it. "Got you some toffee latte shit." 

"Aw," Eren gave a smirk and took it from him. Unlike Levi, Eren wasn't wearing gloves. He was still wrapped up in a large brown coat and a green scarf. His outfit was even complete with a beanie. But no gloves. "You remembered." He nudged him gently with his shoulder. "Does this count as a present for our second date then?" 

"Second date?" Levi scoffed, glaring over at Eren. "We haven't had a first date yet." 

Eren shrugged in reply and gave him a cheeky grin. "Yet." He repeated. "Is this you agreeing to a date?" 

"Fuck no, Jaeger." Levi muttered, his glare not easing up. 

"Sounded like you were to me." 

Rolling his eyes at Eren, he ignored his comment and drank his own tea. He turned his gaze back out to the park, giving a content sigh. There weren't many people in the park seeing as it was quite early, but there were a few. Some couples on a walk and he occasional person on a bike rode past. 

"So how come you had to drag my ass out here?" He questioned Eren. 

With a small shrug, Eren leant back against the bench. "Dunno. Just got bored and thought 'who would I want to annoy the most who definitely needed it the least'." He joked with a laugh. 

"Yeah you're damn right about that." Levi grumbled, taking a drink of his tea. 

"Your boss wasn't too mad was he?" Eren asked, a slight frown on his face in concern. 

Levi shook his head at that and glanced back at the brunet. "No he was fine with it. Known the twat too long for him to get pissy at me taking a lunch break early." He said with a small smirk. 

Eren laughed slightly at that and grinned, finding it all interesting. Everything about Levi was interesting. "How long have you known him?" 

"Too long." Levi grumbled. "At college he came for a year as a transfer student in France. Something about 'broadening his horizon' or some shit. Fucker still can't speak French fluently." He complained, earning a laugh from Eren. 

"Seriously?" The brunet grinned before drinking some of his coffee. "Seems like a waste of time personally." He said, Levi humming in agreement. 

"How's law going?" Levi asked with a small smirk. 

"Shitty." Eren huffed. "Wanna walk around?" He asked, Levi nodding in reply. They both stood up and Eren lead them in a direction to start walking around the park. "I have about a million assignments due in soon. I'm practically living in the library, it sucks." 

"That's what you get for choosing a hard course." Levi said with a smirk. "It'll be worth it in the end, though." He pointed out. 

"Yeah." Eren laughed softly. "Dad'll be happy when I graduate. He wanted me to be a doctor." 

"Of course he fucking did." 

"So for the first year of uni I told him I was at medical school." Eren admitted with a soft groan. 

"What?" Levi looked to Eren in slight shock. 

"Yeah." Eren's groan turned into a small laugh as he shook his head. "Was too scared to tell him I wanted to do law. To be fair he took it well when he found out. I think he was more angry that I didn't tell him." 

"Well of course he fucking would be." Levi scoffed at him. "Imagine your son lying to you for a year about what he's going to do for the rest of his life." 

Eren gave a small hum at that and looked down. "He shouldn't have pressured me so much." He grumbled to himself, kicking a stone along the path as he did. 

Levi rolled his eyes at him acting like an angsty teen. Instead of pressing the matter more he decided to leave it at that. If Eren had daddy issues then talking about it in the middle of a park wasn't the best idea. 

"God I can't believe you dragged me out in fucking winter." Levi changed the subject, half curling in on his scarf again to keep his chin warm. 

"It's not too bad." Eren said, looking back over to him. A smirk grew on his face when he saw Levi. "What, you hate the cold that much?" 

"Yes!" Levi huffed, sticking his free hand into his pocket. "I don't do well in the cold okay?" He grumbled to him. 

"Aw Levi if you wanted to cuddle you should've just asked." Eren teased him, swapping the coffee into his other hand. Moving closer, Eren draped his free arm around his shoulders teasingly. 

"Get off-" Levi squirmed his shoulders slightly, trying to get out of his grip. "Fuck you're annoying." He huffed when Eren's grip tightened. Not enough to hurt. He could easily get out of it if he wanted. But he couldn't lie - Eren was like a furnace. 

"Then why you still hanging out with me?" Eren asked cheekily. 

"No fucking idea." Levi responded with a glare. Though the slight blush on his cheeks and the way he was curled in on himself was not threatening to Eren at all. 

Instead, Eren just grinned back down to him and continued on. "December is one of the best months! Christmas is in December." Eren claimed with a nod. 

"I hate Christmas. It's full of shitty traditions and shitty social things and shitty acting." 

"Come on! Where's your Christmas spirit!" Eren teased, shaking him gently by the shoulders. " 

"My birthdays on Christmas." 

"Oh shit really?" Eren widened his eyes at the information. "Does that make you like a modern Jesus? You know they think he was short too." 

"Oi," Levi snapped, nudging him with his elbow. "Fucking watch it or you're going in the fountain." 

Eren laughed in response, taking his arm off him. Levi hated to admit it, but it felt more natural with Eren's arm around him than not. Too natural. 

"Of course you'd be a Christmas grinch." Eren gave a sloppy grin, shaking his head at the raven. 

"Yeah that tends to happen when people forget your birthday." Levi scoffed. "I still celebrate it, though, because of Izzy." He explained. 

"Ah yeah." Eren nodded at that. "I'm sure she's wild on Christmas." He grinned at the image. 

"She's always wild." Levi grumbled. 

"True." Eren laughed happily. "How is she anyway?" 

Levi gave a small shrug. "Normal. She's fine." He told him. "She does keep asking after you, though." 

"Well then I mustn't disappoint the young lady." Eren smirked slightly, looking at Levi. "You should bring her next time we hang out." 

"Next time?" Levi raised an eyebrow at him, meeting his gaze. 

"Yeah, next time." Eren grinned widely. "Where should our third date be? Oh! We could take her to an ice rink!" Eren gasped, his eyes widening. 

"No." 

"Oh Levi come on! She'd love it!" 

"Yeah and if she's anything like you she'd go flying from trying to go to fast." Levi snapped at him, glaring up at him. 

"Oh but that's the fun of it!" Eren grinned softly. "Plus, they have the little penguins for children now." 

"Little penguins?" Levi questioned, his brow furrowing in confusion. "What like roller skates or?" 

"No." Eren laughed. "Like these children sized penguins that kids can hold onto to roam around and not fall over." He explained to the raven. 

"Sounds dangerous." Levi grumbled, finishing off his tea and throwing it in a nearby bin. 

Eren followed suit, finishing his own coffee before putting the cup in the recycling. "So is it because you're worried about her or because _you_ don't wanna go? You scared?" Eren teased as he rejoined Levi's side. 

"I've been ice skating before." Levi sighed. 

"And has Izzy?" 

"No." 

"Exactly!" Eren patted Levi's shoulder, his own excitement coming through in his actions. "Oh come on Levi it would be so much fun!" He claimed. 

When Levi just sighed in response Eren's grin grew impossibly wide. He really was like a kid at heart, and it reminded him too much of Isabel. They got on far too well, and Levi was slightly worried about that. Eren would leave and filter out of his life, and Isabel would lose him as a friend. 

"So you'll pick me up this Sunday?" Eren asked cheekily. 

"I'll pick you up?" Levi clicked his tongue at Eren, glaring up at him. 

"Yeah," Eren shrugged. "Unless you want to move Isabel's stuff into my shitty student car." Eren explained his logic. 

"Fucking brat." 

When Eren just beamed in response he knew that he was screwed. He was going ice skating with Eren and Isabel this Sunday whether he liked it or not. And fuck, he did like that idea. Sure he was tentative about letting Isabel on the ice, but like Eren said, she was wild. She would absolutely love it, even if she fell over and hurt her knee. She never let anything like that get her down. She'd always get straight back up and carry on running. 

When Eren noticed Levi checking his watch he offered to walk him back to work. Or more told him he was going to walk him back to work. Levi surprisingly didn't mind, actually enjoying the company on his way back. It took his mind off the cold, and if anything Eren's presence stupidly kept him warm. The brat was walking far too closely to him, to the point where their arms were almost constantly touching. Though it was his own fault too. Levi didn't have the courage to move away from his touch. Or the need. 

When they reached his office block Levi said his goodbyes, saying he'd see him on Sunday. Which pretty much sealed the deal that he was going out then. It didn't necessarily count as a date - just like today hadn't. He refused to accept that. However he didn't mind spending time with the brat. 

Heading back up to his office Levi took off all of his winter gear and set it back in his office neatly. He took his lunch out of his bag and headed to the staff room. That was the only downfall - they didn't actually end up eating. Meaning Levi would have to work quicker to catch up and eat while doing so. He's done it before, he didn't mind too much. But fuck it could've been avoided. 

"Didn't you take an early lunch?" Erwin asked, confused as he entered the staff kitchen. 

Levi took his food out of the microwave and looked to Erwin. "Yeah." He frowned slightly, mixing his food up with his fork as he picked up the container. 

"And you didn't eat?" 

"No." Levi scoffed at him as if he was stupid. He moved to eat a small mouthful of his pasta as he left the kitchen and headed back towards his office, leaving a bewildered Erwin behind. 

"No." Erwin imitated, sighing as he made a new brew of coffee. "Because eating lunch on a lunch break would be stupid." He grumbled under his breath as he continued on. 

Erwin followed Levi through into his office, ignoring the state from Levi when he realised what he was doing. He leant against the doorframe and sipped his coffee. 

"Can I help you?" Levi sighed as he typed in his password. 

"How come you didn't eat when you were out?" Erwin asked him. Straight to the point. Nice. 

"Wasn't hungry." Levi gave a small shrug. 

"So you weren't meeting anyone?" Erwin suggested with a small smirk. 

"What makes you think that?" Levi glared at the taller man. 

"Because you brought lunch so you weren't going to buy any. Come on Levi you never leave during the day." Erwin flashed him a winning smile, already knowing he was right. "Who'd you go meet?" He asked instead. 

"Just a friend." Levi snapped. 

"Are you going to bring this friend to the party next week?" 

"Fuck no." Levi shot a glare at the blond, that definitely being a bad idea. 

"I'm sure Hanji would have a say in that." 

That was he exact reason why he didn't want Eren going to the party. Hanji would be there. Hanji would be there and she would stick her nose in where it wasn't wanted, as always. 

"Don't fucking say a word to her." The raven frowned at him. 

Erwin just shrugged in response and stood up straighter. "No promises." He smirked as he turned to leave. 

"Fuck off." Levi glared at the back of his head. "And shut my fucking door!" He added, calling down to Erwin who was halfway down the corridor. 

The blond purposely ignored him, earning a pen being thrown to the back of his head before Levi's office door shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im having way too much fun writing this so im probably gonna update it a lot  
> thank you all so much for reading!!<3


	6. Fake date #3.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two go out with Isabel to the ice rink and grow even closer! eren agrees to babysit isabel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol hello again im sorry this took so long, trust that the minute i start enjoying writing again and have loads of ideas i get writers block.
> 
> on a good note, i finish my nursing placement in a week so i'll have way more energy to actually get more writing done. enjoy!

"It's not even a real date." Eren rolled his eyes as he shrugged on his coat. 

"Then why do you keep calling it one?" Armin replied, watching his friend from where he was sitting. 

"Because _I_ want it to be one. _He_ doesn't." Eren sighed, running hand brought he hair to try and tame it a little. It didn't work, of course. His hair had a mind of its own. 

"You're just going to end up headfucking him, Eren." The blond sighed, propping his head up on his hand. "You should ask him out properly." 

"He wouldn't take me seriously." Eren shrugged. 

"Yeah because you would've turned into the boy who cried wolf. Just the boy who cried 'date' one too many times." 

"Yeah yeah very funny." Eren scoffed at him, glaring through the mirror. "I will eventually, I just, I dunno. I don't want to fuck it up like I always do." He said, turning back towards his friend. 

"You really like him don't you?" Armin asked with a soft smile. Though he already knew the answer. 

"Yeah." Eren sighed, moving over to join him at the table. He wrapped his scarf around his neck and put on his gloves before sitting back and waiting. "I don't know what it is Ar but there's just something about him that’s so _different_ and just so _interesting_." 

Armin gave a small hum and lightly tapped his pen against his chin, watching his friends movements. 

"So it's not just because he's attractive?" 

"Well that's a plus too." Eren said with a shrug. "It's just him, he just sucks me in and I want to spend more time with him. Even if he's rude I don't think he means it. I just don't think he really knows how to act around others much." He shrugged. 

"How so?" Armin raised an eyebrow slightly. "I thought he was just angry at the library because you didn't call him." 

Eren pulled out his phone as it buzzed, a small grin forming on his face. "Hm? Oh, no he's always like that." He said as he stood up. "He's outside so I'll catch you later." He spoke as he half ran out into the hall. 

Armin called back his own goodbye as Eren grabbed his bag and shut the door on his way out. He was far too excited to see the man again, even though they had been texting none stop. It was just so much nicer to see him in person. 

Eren was down outside the apartment block within two minutes. He located Levi's car - a sleek black one - and got into the passenger seat. 

Isabel was absolutely adorable in the back, strapped into her booster seat happily. She was wrapped up warm, probably too much if you asked Eren. She had a thick fluffy coat on, a small pink scarf wrapped around her neck and matching red mittens. She also had blue fluffy earmuffs on that were in the shape of turtles. Honestly, she was far too cute. 

"E-ren!" She squeaked happily when she noticed him, her cheeks squishing against her earmuffs as she grinned. 

"Hello kiddo." Eren shut the door, glancing back at her as he put on his seatbelt. "Hey." He said to Levi. 

"Morning." Levi muttered with a small nod. "You gonna be warm enough?" He asked, the ravens signature frown on his face. 

"Yeah I'll be fine." Eren grinned with a shrug. "I'm naturally warm." 

Isabel leant forward as Levi started pulling away from the parking lot. "If, if you're cold E-ren-" she put her hand on Levi's seat, trying to lean further forward. "Then, then papa Levi said we get hot chocolate!" She told him. 

Eren raised an eyebrow slightly at how she said 'papa Levi' and not just papa, but he didn't question it. He guessed she'd just picked that up from him or Hanji saying his name. "Oh wow really?" He gave a fake gasp at the news. 

Isabel gave a wide grin and nodded. "Oui!" She giggled happily. 

"Well then we'll have to be on our best behaviour for papa won't we?" Eren said, nodding along with her. 

"Yeah." Isabel said, sitting back in her seat and looking out the window. "You too! You be good for papa too." She nodded, moving her little mittened hand to place it against the window. 

She started playing with the condensation on the window, just creating small patterns. Levi would have a fit later on when he noticed the smears, but for now she was safe. 

"Yeah, I'll be good for papa too." Eren said with a cheeky grin, glancing to Levi. 

The car ride to the ice rink wasn't too bad. Surprisingly it wasn't awkward, either. Levi had the radio on quietly for a little background music, but whenever Eren wasn't chatting away to Isabel, they were sat in a comfortable silence. Eren couldn't help but relax in the car as he woke up even more, ready for the day ahead. 

They made it in good time, Levi finding a car space nearby so it wasn't too bad of a walk. Isabel walked in the middle of Eren and Levi, holding onto her papa's hand and occasionally jumping in any puddles of melted snow. Something that Eren encouraged greatly, much to Levi's displeasure. 

The ice rink wasn't too packed, seeing as it was still early on a Saturday. It was meant to be colder today than most days, which more than likely put people off from going outside. That was better for Levi in his eyes, really. The less people that were out the better. Eren insisted on paying for Levi, seeing as he was the one that dragged him out. The raven only agreed to it when he said it was okay for him to pay for Isabel. He was smart enough to understand students weren't always in the best financial situations for him to pay for Isabel too. 

They got ready in the seating area, putting on their ice skates. Levi helped Isabel with her little ones, finding it incredibly cute how small they were. Baby clothes were adorable - even to him. He might not react to them as openly as others did, but even he couldn't deny the fact that they were cute. When he used to shop for Isabel when she was just a baby he'd dress her in the cutest of things. If anything it made his heart swell and his love for her impossibly grow. 

Her first steps on the ice were anything but adorable. Isabel immediately started her happy squealing as she slid towards the middle. After having a mini heart attack at his child slowly sliding away – Levi got on the ice and followed her. It didn't help much, Levi wasn't very good at skating. 

But of course, Eren had to be some talented ice skater in a previous life. Well, not talented. The brat wasn't amazing. But he could keep his balance, and that was more than Levi could do. 

Eren skated up beside Isabel, holding out one of the child sized penguins that could be used for balance. It was the perfect height for her and had handles on so she could skate freely without the fear of falling. If Levi wasn't so god damn proud, the brunet probably would've tried getting him to use one. 

The first fifteen minutes of skating passed like an absolute breeze for Eren. He loved skating around, occasionally going forward with Isabel so she could speed up but stay safe. They'd pass Levi on the ice multiple times before coming back to his side. The only reason why Levi didn't completely snap at Eren was because Isabel looked like she was having so much fun. It warmed his heart, really. But the thing that didn't was the idea of falling flat on his arse on frozen ice. 

"Oh shit-" Levi muttered under his breath. 

Eren looked over to Levi with a wide grin, laughing at the fact Levi was slipping. It was quite cute to see - even if the glare Levi was giving him would probably haunt his nightmares. He couldn't find it in himself to care. He looked very endearing, all wrapped up and trying to keep his balance. 

"Don't just laugh at me!" He snapped at the brunet, slowly making his way over to the side fence. 

"Pap! Pap pap pap-" Isabel very very slowly tried following him. "Do you need Berty?" She asked him. 

"Berty?" Levi frowned slightly, glancing at her. Which was his main mistake. He started slipping again, holding his arms out to try and keep his balance. 

"Berty the penguin." Eren explained with a soft laugh. He skated up beside Levi smoothly and gently gripped his arm to help stable him. 

"Oui! Berty!" Isabel watched the two men. When she saw that Levi was safe she started very slowly skating off again, more sliding on her skates while using the penguin. Though instead of making her way around in a larger circle, she stayed close to her papa and opted to just go back and forth next to him and Eren. 

"I don't need Berty." Levi grumbled to himself with a frown. "And I don't need help, brat." Levi told Eren, trying to tug his arm back. 

In return Eren just gave a cheeky grin and let his arm go. He held his hands up in defence, watching as Levi immediately started struggling again at the force of his own tugging. "You sure about that grandpa?" 

"Yes-" Levi whipped his head round to glare at him. 

When he was finally stable he continued to slowly make his way to the side again. He made it a good few step before his balance went again, however this time he wasn't able to save himself. He gave a small swear in French as he started slipping again, holding his arms out in some sort of counterbalance. 

Just before he was about to fall Levi felt a secure arm wrap around his waist. He was lead safely to the bar, the unmistakable body of Eren's pressed up against his side as he did. And fuck did that do things to Levi he wished they didn't. 

It didn't go unnoticed by Eren, the way the raven avoided his gaze. The fact that he was a light blush on his cheeks was enough to spur him on even more. 

Reaching the bars, Eren put his hands either side of Levi and trapped him against the side. It was only a light grasp - he could get out if he wanted. However he somehow doubted he would try on the ice. The raven turned around in his arms to face him, a glare evident on his face. 

"What are you looking so smug about, Jaeger?" He snapped, drawing Eren's attention out of his mind. 

"I'm not." He replied cheekily with a grin. "I'm simply making sure you don't fall." 

"What by holding me here against my will." Levi grumbled as he looked around. 

Gently, the brunet moved even closer to press his chest against the smaller mans. His grin simply widened when Levi placed his hands on his chest and lightly leant back. Mostly to glare daggers up at the younger man, but Eren didn't mind. Levi had a way of making him forget about everything else and just focus on him. If anything, the glare he was giving him was endearing to him. Not scary, as he probably intended. 

"Jaeger," the raven hissed under his breath. "Not in public." 

The younger males eyebrows shot up at that and he leant forward every so slightly. "Not in public?" He repeated quietly, a smirk on his lips. "Meaning in private?" 

Levi clicked his tongue at him and slapped him lightly on his chest with a gloved hand. "You know what I mean, fucking brat." 

Eren gave a soft hum and shook his head. "Not sure I do." He replied, his voice dropping an octave. "Please, explain it to me." He purred quietly, slowly but surely inching his face closer to the ravens. 

God how he wanted to kiss those lips. They were almost calling him. Teasing him to just go for it. How he was dreamed about being this close to the other man, and now that he was here it just felt too surreal. Levi wasn't pushing him back. Levi wasn't rejecting him even though it was clear Eren was leaning in for a certain something. That his intentions of being this close weren't exactly public friendly if you hated PDA. 

The fact that the raven was just watching him, their gaze never breaking, it spurred him on. As if time stopped around them and he was just being drawn to his soft lips. The blush dusting Levi's face – Eren was choosing to believe that it was down to him rather than the cold. 

Eren was inches away from his face, their noses very lightly bumping as he leaned in. Fuck, a few more seconds and- 

"Papa!" 

Levi jumped, startled out of their little bubble and back into the real world. Eren couldn't hide the disappointment from his face as he pulled away from Levi, giving him the space he needed for Isabel. 

"Yes?" Levi gently shuffled closer to her, trying to be careful not to fall. Instead of using Eren as a guide, he used the railing. 

God, Eren was so close to kissing him. He couldn't even find himself to be angry at Isabel at essentially cockblocking him. Isabel was too sweet and innocent to be doing it on purpose. 

"Cuddles, just, just for me!" 

Or maybe not. 

"I know, chérie, don't worry." The raven chuckled at his daughter, unaware that Eren was feeling such betrayal from little Isabel. 

The little one had purposely stopped him from getting so close to her father because cuddles were 'just for her'. Giving a small huff, Eren looked away and watched a few other couples skating on the ice. He couldn't deny the fact that he was jealous of them holding hands and out on dates together. He knew that he wasn't with Levi. This wasn't a real date, despite their moment. But God did he want it to be. 

"Oi, brat," Levi got his attention, the brunet's head whipping round to look down to him. 

"What?" Eren promoted with a frown. 

"You look like you've lost all hope in life."

"Papa-" Isabel looked up at him cautiously. "Is E-ren mad?" She whispered to him, though Eren could obviously still hear her. 

"No chérie, he's not mad. Are you?" 

"Hm?" Eren snapped out of his thoughts even more before he realised what Levi was getting at. "Oh- no Izzy, I'm not mad." Eren gave a small grin, shaking his head. 

"Do- do you need cuddles?" 

Eren laughed softly and skated up to her slowly. "No, don't you worry I don't need any." He gave her his typical Jaeger grin and offered her his hand. "Let's show papa how skating done, eh?" He offered. 

Giggling, Isabel's face broke out into a small grin. Her little cheeks pushed up against her earmuffs as she nodded. She used the penguin to keep her balance as she took off one hand, immediately grasping Eren's. "Oui!" She giggled happily. 

The two slowly skated off, leaving Levi at the side to just watch. The raven didn't mind. He could have a break and enjoy watching his daughter have fun on the ice. He trusted Eren with her, surprisingly. He knew the brat wouldn't let her fall or hurt herself. And Eren himself knew that if anything like that happened while she was in his care - even if it was just around the ice - he'd get an earful. 

The rest of the day passed in a blur for both males. Eren enjoyed his time on the ice with Isabel, skating around in circles while Levi watched the two. He eventually joined in again, sticking close to Eren as he had a few near-fall experiences. But if anything that added to the day. When their time was up, they changed back into their normal shoes and slowly wandered around town. Isabel was holding Levi's hand, babbling about complete nonsense in between the two men. They eventually found a nice little café to eat in, Eren secretly glad their day together wasn't over so quickly. They stayed and had food, and even Eren managed to convince Levi to get them some pudding again like last time. The brunet did have a sweet tooth, which it seemed Isabel shared that trait with him. So two against one – Eren was sure he would always outwin Levi with that argument. 

By the time they finished eating it was already starting to get dark out as it was in the winter months. Eren didn't mind it, he actually loved winter. Being able to snuggle up in the dark, inside and away from the cold nights - he loved it. It was true a lot of people assumed he preferred summer, and he did like summer a lot. But to a certain extent. There was just something about the Christmas period that he loved too much. 

Eren learnt that Levi was the opposite. He hated the cold. Honestly he could've guessed that from their previous outing to the park. But even just the fact that the raven started carrying Isabel, using the excuse that she was getting tired when in fact he just wanted added body heat. And not to mention when he started shivering on the walk back to the car (despite being under about four layers of clothing) he edged closer to Eren. 

The ride back was a lot more peaceful than the ride there, but seeing as neither of the men wanted it to end so soon there was a lingering air of awkwardness. Isabel – being the little angel that Levi raised her to be – ended up inviting Eren back to their flat for that hot chocolate she was promised so eagerly. The brunet couldn't find himself to be angry at her. Fuck, if anything he should give her some sweets just for being such a good wingman without even realising. 

The raven grumbled his own agreement, trying to pass it off as if he was just keeping his daughter happy. But Eren could tell that the pinkness in his cheeks was due to the fact he wanted Eren to be there and not the cold. It was impossible to be cold in the car due to the heating being on full blast, complete with heated leather seating. Eren didn't even know his arse could feel so much warmth until he was introduced to this car. 

\-- 

"This way E-ren!" Isabel squealed as they entered the apartment, immediately grabbing Eren's hand and trying to drag him off through the house. 

"Isabel non!" Levi frowned as he shut the door behind them. "Coat and shoes first." He reminded her. 

Eren gave a soft laugh at her, though did gently tug her back so she followed what her papa said. "You can show me your room after, 'kay?" Eren let go of her hand and started to take off the many layers of his own winter gear. 

Isabel reluctantly followed the actions of the two men, pouting as she slowly took off her scarf and mittens. By the time she was trying to take off her coat, Levi had already hung up all of his items and moved over to help her. The minute she had her shoes and winter gear off she grabbed Eren's hand and ran off with him. She lead him straight to her bedroom to show him all of her toys. The raven couldn't help but sigh, finding her ways endearing, but he would've hoped by now she was out of energy after today. 

While Eren was being bombarded with toys, Levi started making the three of them hot chocolate. He guessed the brunet would be the same as Isabel – hot chocolate topped with whipped cream and marshmallows. He skipped out on cream for his own drink, but dropped in a few marshmallows. He set the three of them down on the coffee table, making sure they were on coasters before sitting down. 

"Izzy! Jaeger!" He called, twisting slightly on the sofa to look down the hall. 

"Oui?" Isabel's loud voice sounded, her head popping out from round her door. 

"Hot chocolate's ready." He told her, nodding for her to come. 

She really didn't have to be told twice. Immediately she was sprinting down the hallway towards their open living room. It wasn't too big, but it was a decent size. Levi always wanted the best for his daughter, and if he could he would buy her the grandest, up to date place. But even he wasn't that rich. Being a single father – he was just making it. Comfortable, but having to budget well. 

"Careful." He said softly as she skidded down on the laminate flooring. She squealed in reply to him and tried to climb her way up onto the sofa. 

The raven shouldn't have been surprised to see Eren pretty much following in his daughters steps. He ran down the hallway after her, taking advantage of the flooring and sliding on his socks up to the sofa. 

"You are a bad influence on her." Levi clicked his tongue, frowning up at the brunet. 

"Ahh-" Eren grinned smugly, shaking his head. "Alas, she done before me so I believe she is the bad influence on me." He tried, just earning an eye roll from the older man. 

"Shut up and sit down." He said as he gently lifted his daughter up onto the sofa next to him. 

With a wide grin on his face, Eren moved round the sofa and sat down on the other side of Levi. He put his arm on the back of the sofa behind him and relaxed quite comfortably. 

"Which ones mine?" 

"The bigger mug that'll give you diabetes just bloody looking at it." The raven replied, shaking his head. 

He had of course put Isabel's in a slightly smaller mug so she didn't get too much of a sugar rush. Knowing his daughter well – he also made sure to add some cold water so it wasn't boiling hot. She was far too eager if anything, and a burnt mouth for a three year old was not something he wanted to experience again. 

Levi picked up her mug and handed it to her while the brunet picked up his own. Once the two were settled with their hot chocolates, Levi picked up his own along with the remote. He turned on the TV and picked out a suitable movie. 

"You can't stay too long, mind." Levi told Eren, glancing over to him. 

"Aw, and here's me thinking being invited inside for a hot drink meant something else." Eren said cheekily, smirking at the raven as he kept his eyes on him. 

Rolling his eyes, Levi decided to ignore the comment and continued. "Izzy's babysitter is coming in a couple of hours." 

"Oh." Eren gave a small nod. He watched the other man take a drink of his hot chocolate, absolutely captivated by him. "Going anywhere nice?" 

"No." Levi scoffed, turning his attention to the movie. "The company is putting on some crappy business thing. It starts at about eight so I'm going for nine. I hate them. They're basically just 'dress up and pretend to be nice'. I don't even know why I need to go I work with international clients not companies in this country." Levi grumbled, ranting away as the frown gradually increased in between his eyes. 

Eren couldn't help but laugh at him. The image of Levi – rude, anti-social Levi – having to be nice and try and make business deals. Eren almost wished he could be there to witness that. "Can't you just use the excuse of 'I have a kid to look after'?" He suggested, purposely not using Isabel's name so he didn't get her attention. 

Levi sighed and shook his head, relaxing back gently. "No." He gazed at the TV, obviously getting in as much relaxing time as he could before he had to get ready. "I've used it before. Petra's friend's daughter or some crappy teenager is coming to babysit. I'm not exactly happy with it but every other fudger I know will be there at the party." He continued his little rant. 

With a wide grin, Eren sat up slightly and turned to him. "Cancel her." 

"What?" 

"Cancel her." Eren repeated, nodding enthusiastically. 

"What, and get fired? No thanks." Levi shook his head before drinking some of his hot chocolate. 

"You won't get fired, you said yourself your friends with your boss." Eren pointed out, his facial expression still plastered with a giant grin. "I'll babysit." He said. 

Turning to face him, Levi narrowed his eyes slightly. He paused as he inspected the brat, not really sure if he should trust him. "Why?" He asked skeptically. 

"Because why not?" Eren said with a shrug. "I know her, you know me. You can trust me- I've had experience babysitting before-" Eren reeled off, his hands flailing about as if to make a point. "Really Levi it's better than getting in a random teenager that'll probably spend half the night texting their crush."  
Levi gave a small groan and ran a hand through his hair. 

"You know it's more logical." Eren practically sang, the wide grin bigger than ever. 

"It is." Levi admitted with a huff. "But I'm not sure what's worse. A teenager texting their crush all night or a brat keeping my daughter up all night." He commented, sending Eren a small glare. 

"I won't keep her up all night." Eren sighed. "And if I do that just means a longer lie in for you." He shrugged. 

Levi looked back to the TV and gave a small hum, mulling over the whole idea in his head. It did make a lot more sense. It meant that Levi could stay out longer – get drunker as Hanji would've probably planned. He could use the excuse that Eren wasn't coming _because_ he was babysitting Isabel. They couldn't have a go at him at not trying because regardless of what they said, he would be there. 

"Fine." Levi muttered under his breath. 

"Yes!" Eren leaned over and looked to Isabel. "You hear that Izzy?" 

Isabel jumped slightly and looked over to Eren, eyes wide and looking like a dear in headlights. She gave a small babble noise, showing that Eren had his attention even though it was clear. 

"I'm gonna be staying tonight while papa goes out." Eren continued, watching as Isabel's expression broke out into one of a very happy child. 

"Oui!" She squealed happy, bouncing a little on her seat. Luckily she had already sucked off most of the whipped cream and had started drinking the hot chocolate, so to Levi's happiness none spilled. "Can- can we play?" She asked him. 

"Yeah for a little while before bed." 

"And, and we want lots of ice cream and Teddy needs ice cream, and we leave some out for papa but, but no one else!" She told Eren, her eyebrows drawing together as she nodded. 

"Okay-" Eren gave a soft laugh. "We can have a little bit of ice cream but not too much." He smiled as Isabel giggled happily, her little feet wiggling excitedly. 

"Jesus Christ what have I let happen." Levi grumbled as he stood up, shaking his head as he did. 

The raven left the two on the sofa while he got changed and cancelled the babysitting. He only hoped that he didn't come back to a totally trashed apartment, but he wasn't holding his breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my tumblr is [davidcameronsasshole](http://davidcameronsasshole.tumblr.com/) come say hi :)
> 
> thanks for reading!


	7. Drunken mess.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren babysits isabel before a drunken levi comes home

Eren thought he was a great babysitter. In fact, he was probably the best baby sitter in the world. If he had himself as a babysitter when he was younger, he wouldn't have thrown a tantrum every time his parents left him alone with some bratty teenager. If his babysitter had been anything like he was being now, it would've been the opposite. He would've tried to get his parents out at every opportunity. 

They weren't trashing the house, Eren knew better than to push his luck with Levi like that. Equally, he wasn't overstepping the boundaries with Isabel and letting her run wild. No, they were just having a couple of desserts and playing 'camp' in the living room. It involved a whole bunch of blankets Eren found, a few pillows, the floor and two dining room chairs. They practically made their very own movie theatre in the 'camp', as Isabel called it, directly in front of the TV. They watched Disney movies, Isabel changing into her pyjamas half way through their marathon, and Isabel thought she hit the jackpot when Eren said she could stay up till 10pm. Bless her. 

When it actually came to her bed time, that's when Eren started having a little trouble. She was sleepy, it was as clear as day, but she was still adamant on wanting to stay awake. The poor ben simply wanted to spend as much time with Eren as possible. Which honestly Eren thought was adorable. Even if she was being a pain in the arse. 

After managing to get her changed and after two trips to the toilet, she reluctantly went to bed. She only agreed to it because Eren said he'd stay with her and read her a bed time story. 

Eren thought that it would be easy. That a simple bed time story would be like it was in the movies. He'd read to her for ten minutes and she'd happily fall asleep. He'd go out into the living room and relax until Levi came home. 

That did not happen. 

Of course that did not happen. 

Isabel wanted the story read to her again. And again. And again. After reading the story four times, Eren gave up. 

"Izzy," Eren sighed, his shoulders sagging as he flopped the book down onto his lap. "That's enough story time now. You need to go to sleep before your papa gets home." He told her, firmly but trying to be gentle. 

Eren himself was getting tired, and honestly he was planning on napping on the sofa until Levi got home. But even so, he didn't want to risk letting Isabel stay up too much past her bedtime. He still had to be responsible, even more so seeing as she wasn't his own daughter. 

"But- but-" Isabel started in response to Eren. She sat up and tried to squirm onto his lap. "I- I um-" She looked around, trying to think up an excuse to get Eren to stay. 

With a soft sigh, Eren pushed her fringe back and gently readjusted her clip. "No, Izzy. Bed time means sleep time." He told her. 

Smiling softly at her, he closed the book quietly and set it down on her small bedside table. He felt bad enough as it was and although he definitely wanted to stay on her good side – it meant he could remain close to Levi – he didn't want her to get too spoilt. 

When Isabel started pouting at him and looked like she was almost about to cry – fuck, Eren couldn't stop this. He had to make sure he stuck with it else she would try this with Levi too, and he highly doubted Levi would deal with it. 

"Don't give me that look misses." He said, raising his eyebrows and shaking his head. "Come on, sleepy time." He stated, gently lifting her off his lap and placing her back down in her spot. 

"What look?" She asked innocently, probably not knowing she was actually doing it. Giving him the whole puppy dog eyes and making him feel guilty. 

"You know what look." Eren said as he stood up. 

Turning around, he bopped her gently on the nose with his finger as he crouched down. "I bet you pull that face all the time to papa. Don't worry- I do too." Eren whispered the last part with a soft grin. 

It was true. That was probably how Eren managed to stick out being with the raven this long. Not only was he upfront and probably too invasive with the man, he also might have fluttered his eyelashes once or twice at him to be able to stay around him longer. 

What could he say? Eren had a liking for older, attractive men. 

"Non! Non I don't." Isabel stated, shaking her head frantically. 

"Don't worry, I won't tell." Eren said with a soft giggle, in turn Isabel giving a small giggle too. 

"Right, sleep." He stated finally. Moving the duvet up and around her, he helped her settle down and tucked her in. God, she was absolutely adorable. Kids were hard work – very fucking hard work, and he had respect for anyone who both worked with kids and had them themselves. But this? This made him understand why people had them. 

Isabel must've accepted that she couldn't win the battle and followed his movements. Once she was all tucked in (and honeslty looked like a buritto) she finally gave the smallest of yawns. 

"Night night Izzy." Eren said softly, smiling as he pushed back her hair gently. 

"G'night." She whispered, looking up at him before closing her eyes. 

Eren almost wanted to lean down and give her a kiss on the forehead goodnight, but he refrained. He didn't want to overstep it seeing as Isabel wasn't actually his child. 

The brunet stood up and moved around the room quietly. He turned on her little alien night light that was beside the door before turning off her lamp. He guessed it was in case she woke up in the middle of the night and got scared, but it lit up the room with a soft, green glow. 

He quietly shut her door and took off towards the living room, giving a small but soft sigh. He didn't even get to relax straight away as he had to clean up their little pillow fort that they had made. He didn't want to, and if this was his own apartment and his own life he'd simply leave it for the morning. But seeing the state of the apartment, he assumed that Levi might actually have a heart attack if he woke up to see the living room completely turned into a fort. 

Once he had finally gotten rid of all traces of fun in the living room, Eren got a cup of tea and _finally_ settled down on the sofa. By the time he managed to get Isabel to settle and after tidying the living room up, it was nearing on twelve am. Eren didn't know when to expect Levi to come home. To his understanding, business events couldn’t last too late into the morning right? Surely he would be back soon. The brunet didn't mind. Half of him was planning on napping on the sofa anyway. But he'd still like to be awake when Levi came home. 

He set up on the sofa, watching late night TV and sipping on his tea. The warmth of it all (and the added warmth from one blanket that he kept) it was making him tired even more and more. He felt his eyes drooping and himself slipping more and more into a dream world and away from reality. Like that unusual period inbetween actually falling asleep and continuing to watch or listen to something. 

What snapped him out of this weird limbo was the sound of a thump followed by giggles. 

"Shut up!" A male voice hissed quietly. The giggling continued further, and Eren could hear the sound of shoes being shuffled around. "You'll wake the damn brat up." 

"But I wanna meet him anyway." 

"Non." 

Sitting up with a long yawn, Eren turned towards the direction of the front door. The only thing stopping him from jumping up and assuming it was an intruder was the fact he could distinctly make out Levi's voice. Levi's grouchy, low ass voice. 

"Come on you." A female sounded. 

A few seconds later and in came a tall brunette with a large pony tail and far too messy hair to be coming back from a business party. Fuck- was Levi bringing someone back to have sex with? As a one night stand? Judging by the fact he was clinging to her arm and stumbling in, that was probably the case. God he was completely stupid to think that he wouldn't bring anyone back tonight. Levi was an incredibly attractive man. He'd be able to get anyone if he wasn't so socially awkward. 

"There he is!" Levi's eyes locked onto Eren's. The woman gave a squeal, the grin on her face growing impossibly wider. 

"My God Levi you're right, he's far more cuter in person." She said, letting go of his arm to make her way over to Eren. 

"Um-" 

"Hey there Eren kiddo-" She said, leaning against the back of the sofa on her elbows. "I'm Hanji- has Levi spoken about me? He's told me everything about you tonight." 

"Um-" 

"Hanji stop it." Levi groaned, following after her and wobbling a little. By the look of it, he was hammered. "You're embarrassing. Fuck off already." He grumbled, flopping down on the sofa next to Eren. 

To Eren's surprise, Levi moved to settle straight against his shoulder and right onto him. He did not expect this when Levi came home- to be this fucking drunk. But at least he didn't have to be worried about this girl woman being a one night stand for him, right? 

"Yeah yeah. I don't want to imagine what Erwin's doing in my car alone." Hanji cackled, earning a small groan out of the raven. 

"You're driving?" Eren asked, slightly concerned at that. 

"Oh don't worry hun, I haven't been drinking." Hanji's grin turned into more of a devlish one. The expression almost made Eren shudder. 

"How come?" He asked carefully. 

"Because she's a piece of shit." Levi stated firmly as he closed his eyes. He wrapped his arm around Eren and snuggled up even closer to the man- and Jesus Eren's heart was going wild. 

The mere fact that Levi was this close – willingly this close to him and actually hugging him? It was insane. It was cute, but insane. Eren knew that he was drunk, that he was probably going to forget about it in the morning. And if not that then regret it. Either way, it didn't stop Eren's stomach from doing a somersault at the close contact. 

"I was the designated driver tonight." Hanji explained, waving her hand and rolling her eyes as if it was nothing. Most people hated being designated drivers. It meant looking after drunk people and not being allowed to join them. In this case, physically bringing Levi back and actually into his apartment. And he guessed the same would go for whoever else was in the car too. 

But this Hanji person? No, she gave of the impression she had _loved it_. Which was a little creepy to Eren. 

"Designated killjoy." Levi muttered against Eren's chest. 

The comment made Eren give out a small but soft laugh, unable to not find him absolutely adorable right now. "Well thank you for bringing him back." 

"Oh it was my pleasure cutie." She grinned, squishing his cheek gently with one hand. 

Eren squinted at the contact, trying to pull away slightly. He wasn't really comfortable being so close to this stranger, but he guessed that she knew Levi quite well. He would ask about her the next time he saw Levi. After all, she did bring him home safely. 

"Leave." Levi groaned out, snuggling even further into Eren. "You're hurting my ears." He mumbled sleepily, earning a cackled laugh from the woman. 

"Honey you've put up with me all night, I'm sure you can last a few more minutes." She claimed, standing up straight. "But I better go make sure the other dork hasn't thrown up all over my car. Had to leave him in there with the doors locked so he didn't try and walk home." Hanji spoke, and Eren was unsure whether she was speaking to him or to Levi. He would've assumed Levi, however judging by the fact the raven wasn't in the best of minds, she was probably speaking to Eren. 

"Oh- okay." Eren frowned slightly and nodded. "Want me to see you out?" He asked slightly awkwardly, unsure if he should. It meant peeling away from Levi and dealing with her alone- but this wasn't her apartment. Fuck, this wasn't even his apartment. 

"Oh you're so sweet, but no." Hanji shook her head. "Don't worry I've been here too many times, I know my way out." She said slyly, watching the two men. "Plus, I don't think Levi's in any position to be letting go of you anytime soon." 

"Damn right." The raven mumbled against Eren's neck, causing his cheeks to instantly heat up. 

Jesus he was going to be the death of him tonight if he kept this up. 

Hanji simply laughed as she saw herself out, and Eren hoped to _God_ that she didn't wake up Isabel on the way out. Although she was being loud in the living room, the brunette seemed to have some sense to stay quiet while heading out. The last thing he wanted was to deal with a tired and sleepy three year old and a drunken Levi. 

Once he heard the front door close, he shifted slightly to accommodate Levi better. He held his weight up and tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder. "Levi?" He spoke quietly, earning an incoherent grumble from the raven. "Let's get you to bed, yeah?" 

"Non," Levi yawned against his neck, moving even closer against his skin. The added breath made him shudder, and he was trying his best to be nice and not push the other man off him. Not because he wanted to, but because he wanted this to happen in a different scenario. When Levi wasn't pissed out of his mind. "Here's good'nough." The raven continued, slurring his words as he made no sign of getting up. 

Sighing, Eren reluctantly started to move away and out of his grip. He took his movements slow, trying to stand up. When the grip around him simply tightened, he tried a different approach. Eren tried to turn more towards Levi and face him before standing up slowly again. More so Levi was hanging off him a little like a koala bear. Or a three year old. 

"Levi-" Eren gave an exasperated sigh. "Please?" 

Slowly but surely, Levi opened his eyes and pulled back to grumpily stare at him in return. And he stared. And stared. 

"Come on." Eren pressured again when he made no sign to move. 

"Do I really fucking have to?" Levi grumbled, and Eren felt the grip loosen on him ever so slightly. 

Using that to his advantage, Eren slipped out of his grip and took Levi's hands in his own. "Yes." He stated firmly as he tried pulling him up into a standing position. 

The momentum of it caused Levi to stumble forward into Eren, consequently using him as something to lean in. "You're never normally this much of a buzz kill." Levi grumbled against him, practically clinging to him yet again. 

"How much have you had to drink?" Eren asked with a soft sigh, slowly but surely leading him along the hallway and towards the master bedroom. 

"Not a'lot." Levi shook his head. "Swear down. Maybe like, two or five Jaeger bombs." Levi said, holding out one hand and showing him all of his fingers. 

Yeah, five Jaeger bombs then what else? Fuck he had had far too much. 

"Jaeger bombs?" Eren's voice quietened as they passed Isabel's room. "What were you doing having bombs at a business event?" He asked in disbelief. 

"Found it funny." Levi mumbled. When he caught onto where they were, he looked around the room before looking back to Eren. "Because Jaeger." Levi prodded Eren on the chest as if to prove his point. 

What Eren didn't expect was to see the sloppy grin on the older man's face. Eren guessed that was the closest thing he'd see to Levi being proud of a stupid ass joke. Even so, he had to admit that it was a sight he wanted to get used to and see more often. If he could get him to grin like that when he was sober, Eren knew he would've accomplished something. 

"That doesn't explain why you had five of them." Eren stated, gently moving to take off Levi's blazer that he was still wearing. 

Levi absentmindedly let him, luckily. Eren was already far too tired for this, and he couldn't really be arsed to argue with a drunk man into undressing himself. 

"Hanji's game." Levi stated, turning away to yawn as Eren stripped his blazer away. When Eren gave a small hum to prompt him, the older man continued. "To drink a Jaeger bomb every time I think of the _somptueux homme_ called Jaeger." He all but purred the last part. 

Eren's eyes widened slightly as the raven brought his hands up to his chest and pressed their bodies flushed together. God he was not expecting Levi to be like this. But alas, he could not take advantage of Levi like this. He knew how people got after a few drinks. Whenever he was out with his own friends drinking he'd see them all get with people they never would if sober. This was probably just Levi wanting something at the end of a good drunken night. And although he didn't want to believe it, if anything did happen then Levi would definitely regret it. 

He didn't want to believe it, of course not. Things between them – at least in Eren's eyes – had been moving very well. They were spending more time together, texting more often than not. Even calling some nights. And then earlier that day, they had almost kissed. Eren liked to believe he had a chance with the older man. But he wouldn’t take advantage of him. 

"What, so you thought of me five times? Surely you didn’t think I would be burning your apartment down?" Eren gave a soft laugh and stepped away from how they were pressed together. Instead, he made his way over to Levi's chair by his desk to set down the blazer. 

"I thought of you way more than five." Levi all but groaned, and God did it do wonders to the younger male. 

"Levi-" Eren sighed, turning around to face him. "You're pissed out of your mind. Now shut up and get ready for bed." 

Levi's head jerked up a little bit, his eyes widening at the firmness in the brats voice in surprise. If anything, Eren was treating him like a child to get him changed and into bed. He needed to sleep off the alcohol and sober up. 

"Why? What you gonna do if I don't? Bend me over and spank me?" Levi crossed his arms defiantly, turning his nose up in return. The gesture would've concerned Eren into thinking he was actually annoyed if not for the wording being accompanied by Levi losing his balance slightly and stumbled. 

Eren had to refrain from groaning in frustration. This was going to be way harder than it had been putting Isabel to sleep. And Levi was her damn father. 

"What do you wear for bed?" Eren asked, making his way over to the chester drawers. He was adamant on getting him changed and in bed within the hour. 

"My birthday suit." 

Or at least before the sun came up. 

"Levi!" Eren hissed quietly, snapping at him. It earnt a very small laugh from the raven, obviously amused by his own joke. 

"It's my birthday soon. Want me to get it out?" 

"I swear to God-" Eren pulled out a plain shirt and threw it at Levi. It landed smack bang in the middle of his face, causing him to let out another small laugh as he stumbled. 

Eren watched as the raven fell against the bed and rolled onto his stomach. All he could see was the shaking of his body, signalling he was still laughing away at himself for getting hit in the face. 

"Get changed while I get you a glass of water." Eren demanded of him before walking out, leaving Levi to fend for himself. 

The brunet would find this all far more amusing if he wasn't tired. No, scrap that, he did find it amusing. He had never seen Levi like this before, and he would be able to use it as teasing material. However that didn’t make it any less frustrating at this moment in time. 

Going into the kitchen, Eren got a fresh glass of water for the other man and made sure to fill most of it. Before he headed back to him, he made sure to turn off the TV and the kitchen lights just to save him doing it all on the way out. Eren wasn't planning on staying here tonight, even though there weren't that many hours left before dawn. 

Heading into the master bedroom with the glass in hand, Eren was greeted by the sight of none other than Levi trying to pull his button up off and over his head. Only he managed to get it stuck as he hadn't unbuttoned it enough to squeeze through. Shutting the door to signal he was back, he sighed and made his way over to set the glass down. 

"Hello?" Levi froze, his arms up in the air as he gripped the edge of his shirt. 

"It's me you buffoon." Eren laughed softly, shaking his head and he was almost considering taking his phone out and videoing him. The sight was one that he found absolutely hilarious, and he could definitely use it against the raven. 

However his softer side won, and he decided it would be too cruel to embarrass him like that. 

"'m not a buffoon you brat." Levi grumbled, struggling again against the white cotton. 

With a wide grin on his face, Eren came up to Levi and gently slapped his hands away. "Stop it or you'll rip your shirt. Let me, old man." He continued insulting him, watching as the shirt fell back down. 

Pulling the shirt slightly so it was back on properly, Eren undone a few buttons. The raven looked far too interested in what his hands were doing, as if Eren had just answered all of the questions he ever had in his life. It honestly was hilarious, and endearing. Once he unbuttoned it all, Eren slid it off the other man's shoulders and let it fall behind him. That's when he mainly noticed it, really. 

When he mainly noticed how fucking ripped the raven was. Well, he wasn't completely ripped. It was clear that he was well toned and worked out, and you could easily see his muscles if you looked hard enough. The raven must at least keep on top of his fitness to a certain extent. Eren guessed that it must've dipped since having Isabel, or maybe he had recently started it back up since Isabel was getting older. Eren himself wasn't the same as Levi. The younger male used to be big on fitness back in high school, keeping fit and playing sports. Now? Sure, he was attractive. He was on the slimmer side, but he still had areas he was less than happy with. If anything, the thing that got him all the dates during university was his invasive and loud personality. 

"You still want me to wear my birthday suit?" 

"Shut up!" Eren snapped out of his thoughts, blushing as he stood up straight. "Put your damn shirt on." He said, making his way back to the glass of water. 

Levi slowly put on his shirt, laughing away drunkenly to himself as he did. At least he was having fun. 

"Now drink this." Eren handed Levi the glass. 

Watching the raven, Eren stood back as the scene unfolded before him. First, Levi had his shirt on inside out. But it was a start, so Eren would leave it like that. Secondly, Levi started sniffing the glass he had gave him, of course trying to see what it was. After giving it a small sip and realising the water, Eren was not prepared for his next actions. 

The raven all but look at him, holding complete eye contact as he held the glass out in front of him and started pouring it out on the floor. 

With a gasp, Eren widened his eyes and could just watch him. Was Levi for real? He was acting worse than a child. The Levi that, although had a child, tried to keep his apartment in tip top condition. Tried to keep as little spills as possible and keep it as clean as he could with a little kid. 

Yet here he was, tipping a full glass of water out onto his cream carpet. 

Eren almost had a heart attack for the sheer fact he knew if Levi was sober and this had been him doing it, he would get an absolute ass-whooping. 

Once the water was completely drained, the raven reached to the side whilst still holding the brunet's gaze. It took him a few attempts and a lean to finally get the glass to make contact with his bedside table. 

Eren didn't know whether to be impressed with his willpower or furious with it. In the end, it all came down to the fact that this wasn't his apartment. And that definitely wasn't his mess. Still, he was slightly ticked off that Levi was making him just through far too many holes just to get him to sleep. 

"Right, that's it." Eren frowned, shaking his head and mostly putting on being angry. It seemed to work before. "Pants off." 

"Oh-" Levi raised his eyebrows. "Did you-" 

"No." He interrupted Take them off and get into bed." Eren ordered him, trying to stay firm with him like he had to do with Isabel. If anything, now he knew where she got the willpower to go against bed time. 

Levi took his black slacks off, grumbling away to himself. The whole thing did amuse Eren, but he tried his best to keep his 'stern' face on. Every time the raven would glance up at Eren he would immediately look away and grumble even more under his breath. Once the offending pants were off, Levi kicked them towards Eren with a huff. 

"Thank you." The younger man said with a soft grin as he caught them. 

The expression must've rubbed Levi the wrong way, because he all but flopped down on the bed like a sulking child. He crossed his arms and turned away from Eren. 

In return, Eren simply folded up the trousers neatly and put them down on the chair again. The water might be Levi's mess, but he knew the man would actually have a heart attack if he woke up to his clothes all crumpled. 

"Okay then mister grumpy, I'm heading home." 

That got the raven's attention. 

He practically whipped up into a sitting position, eyes locked onto Eren as the younger man walked towards the door. "What?" 

"I'm heading home. Levi it's nearly four am." 

"Non-" Levi reached out, crawling forward on the bed and grabbing his hand to pull him forward. "Je suis désolé. Êtes-vous en colère maintenant? Restez pour le moment." 

Eren's expression turned into a confused one as he watched Levi quickly rattle out words to him. Words that he had absolutely no idea what they meant. He could be ordering Chinese and he'd have no clue. "I don't understand French." He reminded the man softly, his gaze dropping down to their hands. 

"Sorry." Levi started slowly, tugging Eren closer to the bed. "Stay?" He asked. 

Eren knew fine well that all those words in French could not mean those two little words in English. Even he knew that. However, he wouldn’t push the man into spilling what he had just said all again. "What? Why?" Eren asked with a sigh, feeling himself get more and more tired. 

If Eren had been paying more attention, he wouldn't noticed the drunken Levi that was currently gripping onto his hand flinch slightly at his sigh. But he missed it. He missed it and the meaning behind it all. 

"'s late." Levi shrugged in response, tugging him again to try and get him to join him. "And 'm tired. So shush and let me spoon you." 

Eren just simply stared at him as he processed the words. Levi obviously got impatient, as the next tug had been a lot stronger than the first two, and the younger man felt himself stumble forward and onto the bed. Spoon? Levi wanted to fucking spoon? Jesus Christ this was like a dream come true. If only Levi was sober, and knew what he was actually saying. 

"I don't think-" 

"Shut up." Levi slid under the covers continuing to try and pull Eren under with him. "Wanna cuddle." He stated firmly with a yawn. 

Watching him with a sigh, Eren paused. He tried to pull his hand away from Levi's, but it earnt him the biggest death glare he'd ever seen Levi give. Or at least his attempt at it. It made him look like a child if anything. A child that was well on his way to throwing a hissy fit if he wasn't careful. 

"Just cuddling?" The brunet asked tentatively. 

"Oui!" Levi almost yelled, sitting up again with a growl. "Wanna cuddle, so lie down and shush." He shoved Eren at the shoulder, more in a 'go away' action than a cuddling one. But as soon as he flopped down, his gaze was watching Eren expectantly, the frown not budging. 

"Fine, fine. I was just checking you weren't going to try something." 

"I'm not like other girls." Levi stated, turning his nose up again and closing his eyes. 

"What?" Eren asked, his mouth curling up into a smile as he slid out of his jeans. And just his jeans. If he slept in them, he wouldn't be able to sleep. 

Or was that too far? What if Levi woke up and assumed the worst then- 

"I'm not like other girls." Levi repeated, opening one eye slightly to watch the brunet lie down. "I don't just want the booty. I want the- uh, the-" Levi opened both eyes as he tried to think of a word that rhymed with booty. 

"Uh-huh. Sure." Eren laughed as he slid under the covers, trying to distance himself. "Can we go to sleep now?" He asked, turning off the lamp. "Or I'm going to leave." 

"Non." Levi immediately crossed the distance Eren had put between them and wrapped his arms around him. He snuggled into the brunet, letting out a content sigh and snuggling in. 

Laying back, Eren could just sigh and roll his eyes. Levi was obviously a cuddly drunk. Which although it was cute, it seemed quite annoying. Just because Eren couldn't figure out what the fuck was going on in his mind. Sure, earlier Levi had been clinging to Hanji, but was he like this with everyone? Eren didn't like that thought. But equally he didn't want to assume that he was just like this with him and in turn get his hopes up. 

"Snooty?" A quiet, drunken voice sounded, slightly muffled from being pressed up into his shirt. 

"What?" 

"Booty- snooty?" 

"That doesn't work." Eren whispered with a soft laugh, shaking his head as he simply relaxed. 

Fuck it. He was enjoying his time with Levi, and he was sure Levi would be embarrassed in the morning. But that was what drunken memories were for, right? To embarrass yourself? Yes. 

Eren liked Levi, and he valued his time with him. So if that meant he had to put up with him being a cuddle bag for the night, then so be it. He would do it for Levi without assuming fuck all. 

"Go to sleep." Eren whispered amongst his laughs. 

Levi responded with a slurred chuckle before he slipped off into a deep, drunken slumber. He left Eren awake, feeling his breath against his skin and the rise and fall of his chest as the brunet attempted to sleep himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Je suis désolé. Êtes-vous en colère maintenant? Restez pour le moment." - I'm sorry. Are you angry now? Stay for the moment.
> 
> \---
> 
> guess whos back twats  
> hey
> 
> im officially halfway through my summer holidays and this is where my productivity kicks in so expect a lot of updates on all my stories in the next few weeks :)
> 
> also, levi getting stuck in his shirt actually happened to me when i came home from a night out once,, I got stuck trying to take my dress off and my friend snapchatted the whole thing on her story. I was mortified in the morning  
> on top of that, i found out whenever my friends tried to get me a glass of water when i was in the club i'd pour it out onto the dancefloor so yeah, they dont get me water anymore
> 
> hope you enjoyed reading!


	8. Embarrassment.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi deals with the consequences of getting drunk, and Eren has something he wants to ask Levi.

When Levi woke up all that greeted him was the throbbing of his head. Why did he let Hanji talk him into drinking so much again? Oh yeah, because he was an idiot that had a moment of weakness. 

One moment of weakness meant a lifetime of regret when it came down to Hanji. He didn't even want to imagine what happened. Groaning, he pulled the covers over his head, trying his hardest to block out as much sun as possible. In his old place he had had black out curtains, and they were a God sent in situations like this. But now he was an 'adult', and couldn't afford to sleep in. When he moved here with Isabel he had purposely gotten curtains that were lighter and didn't block out as much sun. Purely so he could be woken up as early as possible - to match Isabel's natural body clock - and not to sleep in when he did get the rare chance to go on a night out. Well, it was just meant to be one or two drinks seeing as it was a fucking business event. But did that stop Hanji? No. 

Apparently it didn't stop Levi from accepting all the drinks she kept shoving down his through, either. 

She knew he hated those events. She knew he needed at least a little bit of alcohol in his system to just be able to tolerate them, and even more if he was meant to socialise with others. But once she caught whiff of Levi spending even more time with the very same guy he had met on the plane - she took full advantage of his situation. Everything past the second shot was more and more of a blur. He barely remembered getting home, never mind actually getting into bed. 

Groaning, he slowly tried to sit up. Fuck- he got far too drunk last night. He was all about to give up and flop back down to sleep when he heard a crash in the kitchen. Instead of rushing, he simply let out an exhausted sigh. This wouldn't be the first time he had woken up to Isabel messing around in the kitchen. One time she had tried to get up early to make him breakfast. It didn't work. He had woken up to a smash and found Isabel crying with a bowl of cereal shattered all over the floor. He couldn't be mad at here, even if he tried. However he did explain that she had to be more careful with these things as she could get hurt. That was the last thing he wanted, for her to cut her hand or her feet just because she wanted to do something nice for him. 

So getting up slow and steady was really the only option for him. He had to get up, to make sure Isabel wasn't trashing the place, but the pounding in his head and the need to sleep made him go slower than wanted. When he eventually stood up - and grimaced at the wetness below his foot, what the fuck? 

He grumbled to himself as he picked up his foot and looked to his carpet, seeing a small wet patch. Half of him panicked thinking he had either thrown up and completely failed to make the toilet, or he pissed and failed to even make it to the bathroom. That, or it was the empty glass on his bedside table. And he was praying to god that it was that. He would take a vodka stain over piss or vomit any day. Though with a child around, there were a few of those painfully stuck ones dotted about that he chose to mentally block out. 

At the sound of another loud bang, Levi resulted in making his way slowly through the hallway and towards the kitchen area. "Izzy," Levi started, yawning as he squinted slightly. "What are you doing?" 

Coming face to face with Isabel was something he expected. Something he did not expect was coming face to face with Eren. _Eren_. 

Of all people. 

"Uh-" 

Levi froze as the brunet turned to look at him, a wide grin on his face and flour in his hair. His kitchen was a mess. An absolute, pain staking mess. 

Flour was all over the counters - and the floor - and a small packet was full of empty egg shells. But if he looked close enough, he could easily see some reminants oozing out onto the counter. The very idea just made him shudder. But more importantly, Eren was giving him the biggest shit-eating grin that was far too happy for a morning. Far too happy for him to deal with on a normal morning, never mind a hungover morning. 

"Oui?" Isabel got his attention back, answering to the call of her name. She was sitting down at their little table, waiting patiently with her sippy cup of milk next to her. 

"Uh- nothing. Sorry, Jaeger what are you doing here?" 

"Making breakfast." Was his response. 

The brunet turned his back to Levi, and the older man just stood and watched in confusion. He didn't mind that Eren had stayed over, it made him feel less guilty about sleeping in. But he really hadn't expected him to stay the night. 

"Okay… did you not go home last night?" He asked, slowly making his way through the kitchen and straight to the kettle. He needed something to fix his thirst. Desperately. 

"Well I tried to," Eren started, his voice sounding far too smug for his liking. "But a certain someone wouldn't let me." 

Frowning, he glanced up to the younger male as he slowly made his cup of tea. Was he on about him, or Isabel? He could understand Isabel trying to make him stay, but surely he didn't? 

"You could've just told her no…" He said quietly, his voice still laced with ever so slight confusion. If anything, he was still too tired and hungover for this. 

The very sound of Eren's laugh usually sent Levi's stomach fluttering. Right now? The opposite. It had him wincing in pain from the sheer loudness of it. Fuck, when did he get so old? He envied those who could drink and not get hangovers. 

"Oh it wasn't her." He told him, and Levi's stomach immediately dropped. "I believe her papa wanted someone to cuddle, and I was the designated cuddler for the night." Eren teased him, and he just groaned in response. 

"I don't want to know." Levi said firmly, rubbing his face with his hand. Jesus Christ, he had to be lying. Right? Surely the brunet was just winding him up. 

"Sit down and I'll tell you all about it over breakfast." 

Levi reluctantly picked up his cup of tea and made his way over to the dining table. He took a seat next to Isabel and let out a long sigh. Once his tea was set down, he rested his head on the table and had to hold back the groan. Did he seriously force Eren to stay and cuddle him? The brat could tell him anything and he'd believe him at this point as he remembered absolutely fuck all. He was hoping the brunet was just pulling his leg. Just winding him up and teasing him. But something deep down told him that he wasn't lying, and he had been very embarrassing last night. 

When situations like this arose, and he remembered fuck all, Levi often chose to not be told what he done. It was so much easier living in blissful ignorance and hoping, _praying_ , that he didn't do anything too bad. And if in the worst case scenario he did do something bad, then he only hoped it was something that people could laugh at and easily forget. There had been times where him, Hanji and Erwin wouldn't stroll home till around four am, still pissed out of their face and calling taxi places to try and order kebabs. They had been some of the best nights, when he could handle it, afford it and didn't have a child to look after. But he'd like to think those wild nights were behind him. He hadn't asked not to be told what happened for quite a long time. 

"Papa-" 

"Non Cherie," The raven sighed, shifting his head slightly to peer over to Isabel. "Papas just got a bad head." He told her softly, feeling equally as bad and guilty for her. 

He knew that she had been in good hands last night, he trusted Eren. But Isabel was still his responsibility, and he still felt extremely bad for putting Eren in that situation. Sure, he hadn't been that bad before in her lifetime, but still. 

"Did you have fun last night?" He asked her softly, sitting up properly in his seat. 

"Oui!" Isabel squealed. 

Isabel went on to tell Levi all about the night Eren and her had. It warmed his heart to know that she had enjoyed herself, and that Eren properly cared for her. That he took the time to play with her and make sure she was okay. To send her off to bed properly with a story and not just leave her to her own devices and watch TV or use up his internet. That's why he hated getting in babysitters he didn't know, or from people he knew through people. If it wasn't one of his close friends, chances are Levi would opt to stay in than go anywhere else, even if it was work related, to care for his daughter. 

Which Isabel was telling him everything (he just let her speak, half taking it in due to his headache) the brunet was doing something for their breakfast. He didn't deserve t. If anything, Eren should've woken him up at the crack of dawn and told him he was leaving. He was surprised the brat wasn't angry at him for being such a state last night. Levi was grateful - extremely grateful that not only did he deal with him last night, but he's also making sure he eats this morning. 

Once Eren started putting toppings out on the table Levi realised he was making them pancakes. Of course he was, he was like a kid himself. But the raven couldn't find it in himself to complain, or even tease the younger male. Once the toppings were all properly laid out and they all had plates, Eren brought over a stack of pancakes. Levi nearly had a fit because fuck, the brunet had made them European pancakes. Not the thick, chunky ones that were found in Canada, but good old fashioned ones he had back home. The thin, far tastier ones that he grew up with. 

This brat really was something. 

"What would you like on your pancakes Izzy?" Eren asked her softly. 

"Um, um, chocolate?" She asked, kicking her little legs under the table. 

Eren sent him a small glance to double check that chocolate was okay for her. With a sigh, he faced her instead. "Only if you have bananas with it, remember?" Levi promoted her softly. 

She gave a small pout in response, thinking over her options before nodding. "Ok." She said. 

Eren helped her with the first three pancakes, spreading the chocolate on for her and placing cut bananas all over. While Levi was resting his head on his hand he assumed the raven couldn't see and skipped out on the bananas on the last pancake. Levi obviously noticed, however didn't say anything as he was too hungover to argue. 

Right now, he just wanted to go back to bed and sleep for the next five years. 

Through Eren's prompting, Levi made up two of his own pancakes. He went for the usual orange and sugar, something light but sweet. He really didn't want to eat anything, feeling ridiculously sick. Like if he ate anything he'd bring it all back up and more. If anything, he was thirsty as fuck. Which meant he was dehydrated, he knew that. That was the whole premesis of a hangover. While he was rolling up his pancakes and cutting them into sections, Eren made up his own. 

Eren opted for honey and berries. Something disgustingly healthy that Levi should be eating, but once again the very thought of it sent his stomach churning. The brunet was surprisingly quiet whilst they added their toppings, letting Isabel speak for all three of them. It was killing Levi inside. The very fact that he wasn't bringing up what happened, sending him occasional glances in almost teasing and playful ways. He hated it. 

There was obvious tension between them. Through Levi wondering and not knowing, and Eren practically acting smug, the air between them was a lot thicker. If it continued, Levi would get pissy. The only problem was, Eren was making no move to start telling him about how much he fucked up last night. Almost resting Levi and wanting the raven to bring it up. 

When they were eating and Isabel was silent for a few moments due to her cheeks being stuffed full, he decided to break the tension. 

"So are you going to tell me what happened or just keep me in the dark?" Levi half snapped at Eren. Not because he was angry at him or anything, but because the damn brat was prolonging this for more than it needed to be. 

"Hmm I quite like watching you squirm. What do you think Izzy? Should I tell papa or leave him squirming?" 

"Squirmy!" Isabel immediately responded with a wide grin. Levi almost felt betrayed by his own daughter, but he half expected her to take Eren's side on this. 

"Oi, have mercy on me, I'm hungover." 

"And who's fault is that, mister?" 

Levi simply grumbled in reply, ducking his head a little and looking down to the remains of his pancakes. He didn’t have much left to be fair, but the thought of finishing it didn’t sit well with him or his stomach. 

"Ya!" Isabel added to the conversation, a wide grin on her face. "Misters." She stated before shoving some more pancakes into her mouth. 

With another long winded sigh, Levi propped his head up on his hand and looked between the two of them. "You really need to stop setting my daughter against me, brat." 

The brunet gave a soft laugh, his wide grin still plastered across his face. "You make it too easy." He responded. "Okay okay, you weren't actually too bad last night." 

That was good news at least. Not too bad was better than ridiculously hammered. 

With just a grunt in response, Eren took that as a prompt to continue. 

"I was only winding you up. Though you did refuse to let me leave. You practically dragged me to bed and _begged_ me to stay with you." 

"I don't beg." Levi snapped, his cheeks turning ever so slightly red. However he wasn't so sure about that. He could remember fuck all – and Jesus, Hanji had been winding him up all night about Eren so it didn't surprise him that drunk him had tried something. 

"You did last night." Eren's shit-eating grin was back on his face. "I didn't realise you were such a cuddler, Levi." 

"Shut up." Levi groaned, rubbing his face in his hands. 

"See Levi, even you can't resist the Jaeger booty." 

"Shut up." Levi snapped again, peeking through his fingers at him. 

The idea of him begging Eren to stay was practically humiliating for him. And he cuddled him to sleep? Fuck, of course he did. Surprisingly enough, he believed the brat. He could tell him anything, and Levi was normally good and sniffing out bullshit. But something about what Eren was saying just sat with him in an embarrassing way, which pointed to him telling the truth. 

"Hurry up and eat your damn pancakes so your damn dark hair can leave. " 

"Oh but Levi I was hoping I could stay longer! You're cute when you want a snuggle, you know." The brat had the nerve to tease, the smirk growing on his face as the blush grew on Levi's. 

"You know what I'm going to batter you one of these days." Levi threatened, but due to the roughness and tiredness of his voice Eren took it anything but seriously. 

"Id like to see you try." Eren teased; a wide grin on his face. "You'd get half way and beg me to sit down while you put on a show." 

That definitely got Levi's attention. Narrowing his eyes, Levi glared back to the brunet. "Izzy," he put his attention back on his daughter for a few moments. "If you're finished go wash up your hands and pick out an outfit." He told her. 

Isabel gave a hum in reply, drinking the last of her juice before slipping down off the chair. "Can I wear my, um the bear stuff?" 

"Yes chérie." Levi nodded, pushing the side of her fringe back gently. He watched as she ran off towards her room, making sure she didn't slip and was safe. 

"Okay Jaeger, you can not me serious about that shit." 

The smug grin that Levi received did not settle his anxieties over the matter. Honestly, Levi knew what he was like while drunk. He knew Hanji and Erwin had a fair share of embarrassing stories, so if this was true then it wouldn't surprise him. It would just be highly embarrassing. 

"Well you know, I have a video and everything-" 

"No Eren." Levi's brows furrowed together, his heart rate increasing at the very idea that he fucking _stripped_ for Eren. And let the brat video it. 

They stared at one another. Eren's smug grin growing and Levi's glare just hardening. The tension between them was growing and fuck, Levi was close to snapping. 

The loud laughter of Eren soon burst the cloud between them, doubling over slightly over the table with a wide grin. "Oh Levi-" He laughed happily, and although Levi hated being laughed at, it was a big relief. 

"I'm going to fucking-" 

"Your face! Oh I didn't realise you might actually do that shit when joke. Levi you bad boy." 

"Jaeger that's not fucking funny." 

"Oh it is." Eren continued laughed, his grin impossibly wide. If Levi wasn't so pissed at him he would've found it cute. "Oh Levi no, don't worry." He beamed at him, resting his head on his hand almost playfully. "You did cuddle me all night and refused to let me leave, but no more. Don't worry your cute little heart." 

Grumbling to himself, Levi folded his arms and rested his forehead on them. "Fucking hate you." He grumbled, Eren straining to hear him to begin with. 

"Oh come on, it was funny!" Eren retorted. 

Levi could feel his gaze burning into the back of his head, and fuck he just wanted the floor to swallow him up. Not only was his head pounding, but now Eren was completely taking the piss out of him. 

It their situations were reversed sure, he would probably do the same. But his head was hurting far too much for him to see the humour in it. 

"Levi." 

"Hnn." The raven responded with a huff, continuing to ignore the other male. 

"Please look at me?" 

"What?" He peeked up under his fringe slightly, his glare from before back and stronger than ever. 

"Aw I'm sorry mister grumpy. I was only teasing." Eren had the nerve to coo at him. "Actually I do need to ask you something-" 

"Papa!" Isabel's voice sounded, interrupting Eren from his little spiel as she came running into the living room. 

"Slow down." Levi sighed as he sat up, a soft frown still stuck on his face. "What's up?" 

Isabel ran up to the side of his chair and patted his thigh. "Can I- um-" She lifted up a soft, fluffy rabbit onesie. "Please papa?" 

Looking down at her, Levi gave a soft sigh, not really in the mood to argue her into proper day clothes. In the long run, it was less work and washing for him when he thought about it. Plus, she was only a child. Why not let her have a little fun? Apparently she wanted to be a fluffy bunny instead of a bear. Plus, on a Sunday he let her stay in her pyjamas for a little bit longer than normal. They both tended to lounge around in their sleep clothes till at least twelve then get properly dressed. But for one Sunday he was sure he could let her lounge in her pyjamas all day. 

"Yes, just this once okay?" 

"Oui!" Isabel squealed, bouncing on her toes gently. 

"You want it on now?" 

As the little red head nodded, Levi moved to stand up. "Okay, I'll be through in a moment." He said, ruffling her hair before starting to collect up the plates. 

"Stop-" Eren stood up himself, waving his hand at him. "Go get some aspirin and get her changed, I'll clean up." 

"No-" 

"Go." Eren interrupted him with a soft grin, nudging him very gently. 

The way that Eren was dealing with him honestly had his heart beating far too quickly for it to be legal. But he didn't argue. Instead, Levi quickly had some tablets before taking Isabel off to change into another pair of pyjamas. 

After getting her changed, he sent her off to go get some toys she wanted to play with in the living room. He had a very quick shower, wanting to feel a bit fresher, and put on a fresh pair of joggers and a loose t-shirt. He had no intentions of going out today, and fuck was he going to let Eren drag him out. 

When he reappeared back into the living room, Isabel was sat comfortably on the rug, playing with her Bratz dolls with Eren. The brunet had been nice enough to take mercy on him and wash the dishes, now he was playing with his daughter and keeping her entertained. The brat had even taken it upon himself to clean up the absolute mess that was his kitchen. It would probably need a once over just to be safe, but right now it looked a hell of a lot tidier than last time. And after all the hassle Levi put him through last night? God, Eren was a saint. An actual angel sent from above. 

Fortunately for Levi, Eren stayed for most of the day. The good thing about that was that he kept Isabel entertained, so that until the aspirin kicked in, Levi could rest up. Not that he was just pieing his daughter off onto Eren, he did join in and play, but Eren was the one forcing him to rest. Honestly he bet Isabel enjoyed Eren's company more than his own. 

Seeing as Eren had been so nice to him, he made them all a light dinner before they settled and watched a disney film. Though as time ticked on, the fact that Eren would have to leave became more obvious. It wouldn't have been, but the brat was just so twitchy in his seat. Constantly fiddling with something and moving to get more comfortable. Isabel didn't notice, but Levi sure as hell did. 

After the film had finished Eren announced that it was best he headed off home. Levi offered to give him a lift, but Eren refused staying that he should stay in with Isabel. 

Eren said his own goodbye to a sleepy Isabel before Levi followed him to the door to see him off. 

"Thank you, for today." Eren said as he pulled on his shoes. 

With a scoff, Levi crossed his arms and watched him. "I should be thanking you, idiot. I can't believe you still wanted to bloody stay after the shit I put you through last night." He spoke quietly so Isabel couldn't hear him swear. 

Eren responded with a laugh, shrugging his coat on and turning to Levi. "I didn't mind." He grinned softly. "It was fun, actually. And I had an excuse not to study today which was good." 

"You shouldn't skip studies you brat." Levi scolded him. 

"It's fine." Eren rolled his eyes at the raven. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something." 

Levi raised his eyebrow at the younger male, softening his composure slightly. "What? Don't tell me you want help with your assignment or some shit." 

"Oh God no." Eren laughed softly. He shook his head at Levi, his laughter slowly coming to a stop. 

His body language was totally different to how the brat normally was. If anything, Levi almost thought he was _nervous_. Which definitely wasn't a good sign, was it? 

"I was actually wondering if you wanted to go out for dinner sometime?" 

Levi couldn’t help the sigh that escaped his lips. Jesus, was he for real? Another invite out? Levi couldn’t be bothered- 

"I'm serious this time, Levi." The brunet interrupted his thoughts, moving slightly closer to him. "I would like to take you out for dinner. For a proper date." 

"Jaeger-" Levi ran a hand through his own hair gently, stepping back a little. "You don't want a proper date. Not with an old fart like me." 

"I do!" Eren gave him a soft smile. "We can bring Izzy along too, don't worry. I can treat the both of you." 

"No." 

Eren's smile cracked a little and he looked down slightly. "Oh, okay." He nodded in defeat. "Sorry I just thought-" 

"Eren I'm too old for you-" 

They spoke at the same time, both stopping to let the other one continue. They stayed in silence for a few moments before Eren frowned. 

"Wait-" He cocked his head slightly. "You're only saying no because you think you're too old for me?" 

"I am too old for you, brat." Levi sighed, crossing his arms again. "Eight years too old." 

"That's not too old for me." Eren responded, getting a little defensive. "You don't get to choose what's too old for me." 

"I didn't mean it like that I just- it's a big age gap." 

"It's not." Eren shook his head, the confident smirk coming back onto his lips as he stepped closer. "Not for me, at least. I quite like older men." 

Levi took another small step back, keeping his eyes trained on Eren. God, the brat was going to kill him. Levi wanted to know what it would be like to go on a proper date with Eren. Of course he did. But the age difference – he was too old for him. Eren should be with someone his own age. Someone younger and better suited for him. Someone who didn't have a child and other responsibilities, and could afford to give Eren the attention and commitment he deserved. 

Levi? He was an old business worker with a three year old. He was boring, and in his own eyes had nothing going for him. 

"Eren-" 

"Just think about it." Eren said, smirking as he pushed Levi's hair back slowly out of his face. "I'll call you tomorrow." He winked at him before stepping back and finally leaving the flat. 

Leaving Levi there to question what the fuck just happened, and why the fuck his heart was beating miles per minute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yooooo a month later and im back ;)
> 
> i thought itd be best if i write a few chapters rather than stopping and starting and stopping and starting sO i have a bunch of chapters already written which will give me time to slowly write the rest! as for updates- how often would people like updates?? im thinking two times a week?? let me know :) and thanks for reading! <3


	9. Christmas.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas time!

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, Levi realised that a certain brunet was finding his way into his life even more and more. If he wasn't working, then he was busy texting Eren. If they weren't texting, they were calling. On top of that, it became a bit of a tradition for Eren to come over every Saturday for his tea. Levi couldn’t even find it in himself to complain. He strangely enjoyed Eren's company, and welcomed it even. 

One thing that was off, however, was the fact that the teasing comments about going out on dates had stopped. Ever since Eren had seriously asked him out for dinner, he hadn't brought it up. Not even when they went out shopping and stopped off for pizza with Isabel, Eren didn't tease or make comments about it. All of the flirting most definitely stayed. If anything, Levi would almost say it had increased. Levi wasn't a blushing mess, and would often brush it off as nothing. But something told him that Eren was more serious this time round, and he was trying harder. 

Either way, Levi was getting used to Eren's company. He was getting far too used to it, so when the brat said he was going back to Germany for Christmas he couldn't help but be disappointed. They hadn't made plans for the holidays, but hints had been made about Eren coming over for at least a few hours to spend time with the pair as well as see Levi for his birthday. 

Apparently Eren's sister was spending the festivities with her partner this year, so Eren was required to go back to Germany. That and Eren being the kind hearted brat he was felt too guilty with even just the idea of his parents spending Christmas alone. Sure they'd have each other, but he knew that living so far away made the thought of Eren returning home for holidays even better for his parents. 

What did surprise Levi was the fact that Eren promised to Skype him on Christmas evening so they could see each other at least for a little while. Levi didn't know why he felt quite flattered with the idea of it. He knew Eren felt bad about missing his birthday, and missing Christmas for Isabel. But he didn't have to go out of his way to call him. The time difference between Toronto and Germany was enough as it was, never mind adding such an exhausting day on top of it. 

Levi's own Christmas had started off pretty well. He woke up to multiple text messages off the brunet, wishing him both a Merry Christmas and a Happy Birthday. Along with those texts, he had about a million and one photos of Eren and whatever else he was doing as the day went on. 

Levi was of course woken up by a little ball of energy called Isabel. She was in his room at 6am on the dot, jumping on his bed and waking him up. It was cute, sure, but fuck he still wasn't used to it. He reluctantly crawled out of bed and headed into the living room with her, where she immediately started squealing at the sight of multiple presents under the Christmas tree that they had decorated so carefully. 

Levi let her run off, and sat down on the sofa watching her as he slowly woke up. Isabel of course looked between Levi and the presents before she started opening them, but he told her to go for it. And go for it she did. After each present she was a squealing, giggling mess. Levi couldn't help but snap some photos and take a video of her. 

The raven absolutely adored his daughter. He had tried his best to spoil her this year seeing as she had actually been very well behaved. He had been saving up and hiding some of the presents since September, just so it was easier for him to buy bits at a time. He wasn't rich, but he tried his best. 

Once all of her presents were open, Levi sat down next to her on the floor and started helping her get some of them out of the boxes. She gave him a happy little kiss on the cheek, and just seeing her smile and seeing her so happy? It made everything worth it. All the temper tantrums and the crying, the nightmares and any time she was being naughty. It made it all worth it. 

As the morning went on Levi woke up a little more, having his morning coffee and sitting on the floor near Isabel. She was playing with her new kitchen set that he had gotten her, a small sized kitchen that of course had fake food and whatnot. He played with her when she wanted someone to 'taste' her food. Other than that, he was quite content watching the beginnings of Christmas movies as she played. 

They eventually had breakfast together, Levi for once letting Isabel eat it on the sofa (with a small tray, of course) so they could watch a Christmas movie together. By the time it was light and Isabel was changing into some proper clothes, Levi started on Christmas dinner. 

It was tradition for him, Erwin and Hanji to share Christmas dinner together. They took turns in hosting it, and this year it was Levi's turn. He had already been roasting the turkey on a slow heat through the night, meaning the apartment had smelt delicious this morning. Something that he knew Isabel was a little too young to appreciate. But he himself loved waking up to the smell of dinner. 

He was content with leaving Isabel to play, the movies on in the background and slowly preparing and cooking the vegetables. It was just a little after lunch time that the door sounded, Hanji's obnoxious knocking being recognisable. 

Turning down the heat on the stove, Levi quickly washed his hands before heading towards the door. 

"Merry Birthmas!" 

He was greeted with the sight of Hanji in a bright red coat, complete with present bags in each hand. Behind her stood Erwin, wrapping up in more eye-pleasing colours and a few small present bags. To the other side of her Moblit stood, a small smile on his face. 

A lot had changed since they started this tradition many years ago. Part of that being the fact that Hanji and Erwin both had partners now. Hanji was with Moblit, a friend of theirs that seemed to be able to calm the insane woman. Only just. 

Erwin was with his long-term partner Mike. They had been dating for around a year before Erwin finally grew up and made it properly official. They had been happily together for three years, and the last Levi had heard they were searching for a house together. 

"Merry Christmas." Levi gave a small grunt as Hanji leapt forward and pulled him into a hug. 

"Do you bloody have to?" 

"This is the one time of the year I can hug you. Let me." Hanji said jokingly, shaking him a little before pulling back. "Aw my baby boy is growing up." She teased him, pinching his cheek before slipping into the apartment. 

"Sorry, I tried to tell her this morning not to be too much." Moblit said with a tentative smile, moving in behind her. 

The raven simply sighed and shook his head. "It's fine. I'm guessing you gave her her present this morning?" 

"I couldn't hide it." Moblit laughed. "I think it's set her spirits impossibly high." He commented, standing to the side and slipping off his shoes. "Merry Birthmas, though." The taller man said with a soft laugh, Levi rolling his eyes. 

She definitely set him up to say that. 

"And where is the cute little Christmas elf?" 

"Auntie Hang-ee!" Isabel squealed and ran towards her, arms out wide. 

"Dear at least take your shoes off." 

The woman ignored her partner and scooped Isabel up into her arms, holding her close and kissing her cheek multiple times. "My my, your papa has my man well trained doesn’t he?" She teased with a laugh. 

"Ya!" 

"I don't think it's possible to train her. Moblit's the closest thing to it." Erwin and Mike followed behind the other man, both following in suit and taking off their shoes and coat. They were all welcome in Levi's apartment, and although they joked all the time about keeping it clean, they would do that in anyones home. It was out of politeness to take off your shoes and whatnot. 

"I'm hoping he'll be able to calm her down eventually." The raven sounded with a smirk. 

"You've been saying that the past year." Erwin laughed, clapping Levi on the shoulder lightly. "Merry Christmas." 

"Cheers." Levi smirked, thankful that Erwin skipped out on the birthday wishes. It wasn't that Levi didn't _like_ celebrating his birthday. He didn't mind it. But this was Christmas, and he didn’t want to take it away from everyone else. 

They came into the apartment a little more, settling in comfortably. Hanji eventually set Isabel down to take off her own coat, in which she immediately went to go say hello to 'Uncle Erwin' and 'Uncle Mike'. Mike had given Levi a small nod in wishes, commenting on how he always preferred having Christmas here as Erwin refused to ever cook food overnight over paranoia of it burning down the house. Which to be fair, was understandable. 

Once Levi had gotten them all drinks and set the food off to cook slowly, they all settled down on the sofas. Levi closest to the tree with Erwin and Mike by his side. On the other sofa sat Hanji, Isabel and Moblit. Isabel was of course making her rounds, showing them all of the presents that 'Santa' had delivered to their house, and how all of the cookies and carrots they set out had been eaten. 

Of course all the adults were happily feeding into Isabel, asking her questions and everything. It was sweet, and honestly the only thing that was missing here today was Eren. As much as the raven didn't want to admit it, he definitely wanted the brat to be here. He wanted his laughter joining in with the others. 

"Well I think Santa got a little bit confused last night." Hanji said, leaning closer to Isabel. "He left some presents at mine that didn't have my name on them!" She gasped, Isabel widening her eyes. 

"Oh no!" She gasped, wiggling on the sofa a little. "Who- where?" She looked a little distressed, pouting at the idea of someone not getting their present. 

"I brought them here." Hanji said, reaching beside the sofa and bringing out a present bag. "Can you read the name out for me?" 

Leaning forward, Hanji held out the tag for her as Isabel slowly tried reading the letters. 

"I- Is-" She paused, giving a small squeal. "Isabel!" She broke out into a wide grin, looking between Hanji and Isabel. 

"Oh gosh!" Hanji gasped, widening her eyes. "I wonder who's called Isabel." She said, giving a small hum in though. 

"Ah!" Isabel bounced lightly on the sofa. "Um-" 

"Oh I know! Erwin you know someone called Isabel right?" 

"I think so yeah." Erwin smirked, looking over to Hanji. "I'm not sure where she lives though." 

"Ah, Uncle-" Isabel pouted, looking back to Erwin. 

"Oh I'm only teasing missy." Hanji laughed happily, ruffling up Isabel's fringe. "Santa asked me to bring them just for you." She said, grinning and placing the bag down on the sofa. 

Isabel giggled a little herself, but waited patiently for Hanji to get out some of the wrapped presents for her to open. Of course Hanji and Erwin both got her presents, deciding to put them in one big bag. 

Hanji got her a nice little set of Peppa Pig cuddly toys and one special toy that spoke pretty much every time you touched it. Levi knew fine well Hanji had done that on purpose. Erwin and Mike got Isabel some Bratz dolls. She was growing out of her old toys and was slowly showing more and more interest in toys such as Bratz. 

After she started playing with them and everything, Levi took Isabel out into the bedroom and they collected up all of the presents they had picked out for them. 

The present exchange went well, in Levi's eyes. Isabel handed out all the presents slowly, taking her time to waddle to each person to make sure she didn't break anything. While she was doing that, Levi put on the fire to make it a little cosier in the living room. They were all happy with their presents, of course giving Isabel a little kiss and the cheek and a hug. 

For Erwin they had gotten him a bunch of very uncle things. Isabel had picked out a very cute shirt that had something about being an uncle on it. But from both Levi and herself, he had picked out some vinyl records. The older man had a bit of a collection of vinyls, and seeing as they were becoming increasingly more popular these days, his collection was growing a hell of a lot. Of course the old fashioned, vintage special edition ones were what Erwin tended to collect, but he got a few of the newer ones too. 

For Mike they went for something nice and simply; some new cologne that he was known for liking far too much. 

Hanji was another story. She was surprisingly extremely hard to buy for. Not because she didn't talk about whatever she wanted all the time, but because she already had everything. Fucking everything. She was a certified hoarder, if Levi had anything to say about it. He had no idea how Moblit managed to keep her hoarding confined into one room, but he managed. 

For Hanji they ended up getting her some art from one of her favourite book series. She was a very eccentric lady, and one that preferred the sciences. But her love for art and literature was an underlying side that people often pushed aside. She had an appreciation of art, and with it being from her favourite book series turned TV series, she was exstatic. 

With the presents exchange all done and everyone relaxing, the conversation turned to something else. Everyone was relaxing and waiting for the food to cook. Isabel was happily playing with her new toys, leaving the adults to it. 

"So, how come your new little friend isn't here?" Erwin asked with a small smirk. Hanji immediately grinned at the change of conversation, already knowing she'd enjoy this turn of events. 

"Who?" Levi feigned ignorance, picking off some imaginary fluff off his trousers. 

"Oh you know who." Hanji beamed at him. "A cute little brunet, hmm?" She wiggled her eyebrows. 

Sighing, Levi rolled his eyes and gave in. "He's in Germany for Christmas." Levi explained, watching as Mike excused himself to go to the toilet. 

"Oh?" 

"Yeah his parents wanted him home for the holidays so he had to." Levi explained. 

"Shame, I wanted to meet him finally." Erwin commented, giving a thoughtful hum. 

"I would've let you come in after the business party but I couldn't deal with two hammered men at once." Hanji laughed quite happily. 

"I still can't believe you got me in such a state." Levi groaned at the woman, pushing his hair back with his hand. 

Hanji just cackled cheekily. "You gave me some insightful information that night, my dear." 

"I don't want to know." Levi muttered, turning to watch Mike come back into the room. 

"Hey," Erwin got his attention with a small smile. "Could you get me some more water please?" He asked, them feeling far too much at home in Levi's house. 

Though the raven would prefer that over all of them feeling too awkward to even go to the loo. 

"'course." Mike nodded, taking Erwin's glass for him. "Levi, how come there's a spare toothbrush?" 

Even Mike was making digs at him now. Wonderful. 

"What is this, team up on Levi day?" The raven scoffed as Hanji cackled. 

"Don't tell me he's moved in already?" 

"Like hell has he." Levi snapped. "The damn brat comes for his tea ever bloody Saturday, and sometimes it gets late so he stays over. I don't want to smell his damn morning breath." 

"You shouldn't be getting close enough to smell his morning breath." Moblit pointed out, Hanji's cackling increasing as she held onto his arm gently. 

"Moblit you're meant to be on my side." The raven glared at him, earning a small and tentative laugh. 

"He has a point." Erwin nodded with a smirk. "So when can I meet him?" 

"Whenever he's back." Levi commented with a sigh. 

"Good. You should invite him over for dinner." The blond told him, moving slightly for Mike to get past. 

"You knew this was coming." Mike commented, a very faint smirk on his lips. 

"He's right." Hanji beamed with a cheeky grin. "Moblit and Mike both had the awkward dinner dates from us." 

"Yes but Eren isn't my partner." 

"He could still hurt you." 

"Deep." Levi grumbled, rolling his eyes. "You can meet him, just don't scare him off okay? The brat deals with enough crap from me as it is never mind from you lot." The raven stood up and started heading towards the kitchen. Both to check the food and to escape the situation. 

"No promises!" Hanji called after him, all of them watching him leave. 

 

-x- 

 

Levi sighed as he finally closed the door behind his two friends. He loved the pair of them, even if he outright refused it, but they really did take it out of him sometimes. Especially with Isabel to top it all off. And, Isabel and Hanji? Recipe for disaster. Levi even assumed Hanji took it out of Isabel a little this year as the redhead was obviously half asleep on the sofa. The only thing keeping her awake was the promise of being able to speak with Eren. She really did love the brunet, which only pointed out how much of an impact he was having on their little family life. 

Seeing as Levi had been tidying as the day had gone along, he luckily didn't have any cleaning to do. He was satisfied with the state of their little apartment, fine with the fact that Isabel's new toys were scattered about. She may not be playing with them at the moment, but he didn't want her to wake up by him moving them all around. 

It was just after 8pm, which meant in Germany it would be 2am. Him and Eren had had a brief argument regarding what time they would actually call. Levi had said that he would kick Hanji and Erwin out early so Eren didn't have to stay up so late, but Eren wasn't happy with that idea. Eren wanted Levi to have the same tradition on Christmas as he did every year, and ensured he would be fine staying up late. He was a student, he could manage staying up till 2am. 

Then on top of that, Levi pointed out that in Germany it wouldn't be Christmas anymore. That pissed Eren off, the brunet stating that he was trying, and even though Eren wanted to call Levi on his birthday, he wanted him to have the best birthday so as long as it was the 25th in Toronto, Eren didn't mind. 

The raven made sure the apartment was locked up and both him and Isabel were changed into their pyjamas. Isabel had her Christmas onesie on, which design was a fluffy little reindeer. Levi had his usual joggers and baggy shirt on, so he was just as comfortable. He sent Eren a text stating he and Isabel were ready whenever, the two sitting on the sofa with his laptop set on the coffee table in front of them. 

It only took a few minutes for Eren to read the text before the recognisable Skype ring tone sounded from his laptop speakers. Even Levi had to take a moment to compose himself before he reached over and hit the accept video call button. 

The raven sat back and waited patiently as the screen loaded. He crossed his legs and let Isabel sit in the little gap it created so they were both on screen. Soon enough, Eren's blurry face and fluffy hair popped on screen. It took a few seconds for the connection to clear up and Eren's massive grin to come into focus. It was clear he wasn't in his room, looking more like he was sitting at a table with the back light of a lamp lighting the area behind him. 

"E-ren!" Isabel squealed happily, trying to lean forward to get a better look of him. 

"Hello cutie." Eren's voice sounded, Levi having to very gently lean over to turn up the volume. 

The raven sat back and held Isabel gently, though she was too excited at being able to see Eren. She was definitely starting to wake up a little more. 

"Good afternoon." Levi said with a soft smirk, watching Eren's eyes move from Isabel to himself. 

"Well hello there. You come here often?" Eren's cheeky voice sounded. 

Levi watched as Eren cheekily rested his chin on his hand. Obviously he still had energy at this time of the night. 

"Not often enough, apparently." Levi retorted just as playfully, deciding to indulge the brat just a little. 

It was the holidays, and he was feeling generous. 

Apparently it even shocked Eren a little bit, but his raised eyebrows soon turned into an even cheekier grin. "Save it for when we're alone, mister." Eren winked at him, earning an eye roll from the raven. 

"Did you have a good Christmas, brat?" He asked, changing the conversation. 

"Yeah." Eren nodded, tone going a little more serious. "Mum cooked enough dinner for about five people so me and dad were forced to have about three platefuls." He told him with a soft laugh. "But no, it was nice. Nice to be home." 

Levi softened his expression slightly, guessing that it had been absolutely lovely for Eren's parents to have him home. Especially with them living so far away, and he doubted the time difference helped make calls easy. 

"Did Santa visit?" Isabel asked happily, bouncing a little in excitement. Both at seeing Eren and the idea of Santa. 

"Yes he did!" Eren gasped, making Isabel jump ever so slightly. 

"Did- what?" She asked excitedly, clapping happily. 

"Izzy calm down." Levi said softly with a chuckle. "Ask again." He prompted her gently. 

"Um, um-" She looked between Eren and Levi, licking her lips for a moment. "What did he um, bring?" She asked Eren, looking back at him with a wide grin. 

"Ohh well," Eren had waited patiently for Isabel to get her words out, and Levi couldn't thank him enough for everything he done with Isabel. Eren was always so patient with her, especially when she got too excited. "He brought me some exciting school books," 

"Ew!" Isabel interrupted, throwing herself back against Levi's chest. 

"What do you mean 'ew'?" Levi asked with a small snort. 

"Ewy school!" 

"Aw Izzy I thought you liked school?" Eren sounded, grinning at the pair of them. 

"Santa no!" She stated, shaking her head. "Santa brings, brings toys! Not school!" 

"Oh don't worry, I asked for them Izzy." Eren told her softly, a grin wide on his face. 

Isabel stuck her tongue out and blew a small raspberry. "Asked for school?" 

"Yeah!" Eren grinned as he nodded. "Because if you do well in school you're a good kid aren't you?" 

Isabel nodded slowly in response. 

"So if you're good then you get toys too!" 

"Oh." Isabel nodded, not really understanding but just nodded along. 

"So I got toys as well." Eren beamed at her. "I got a brand new game, remember that little box I brought over and we played on?" 

Isabel nodded slowly. 

"I got some brand new games for that that we can play!" 

Isabel's little face lit up and she clapped happily. "Can, can we play it soon?" She asked him. 

"Yeah of course we can." He grinned softly at her. "What did Santa bring you? I bet he brought you lots of toys." 

"Ya." Isabel nodded happily. "I got, got Peppa Pig, and some new dollies-" 

"What type of dollies were they?" Levi prompted softly. 

"Some Bratz dollies, I got, I got Jade because she's the best one and then I got my own kitchen!" Isabel squealed happily, getting closer to the screen as she spoke. "Can you come see?" 

"Oh Izzy," Eren laughed softly, his grin widening even further. "You can show me it all when I come back and visit yeah?" 

"Ya okay." She nodded, sitting back happily. 

"So you got a little kitchen?" 

"Ya!" Isabel beamed. "I got eggs and bacon and my very own shop basket and, and I'm gonna make papa some breakfast tomorrow." She whispered the last part. Or tried to whisper, leaning forward towards the laptop. 

"She got lots of nice kitchen toys didn't you?" Levi bounced her very gently. 

"Ya- I got um, pans too." She nodded happily. 

"Oh wow! Santa has spoilt you hasn't he?" 

Isabel grinned and nodded happily. "Thank you Santa!" She yelled happily, kicking her little legs off the sofa. 

"Hey quiet missy, you'll disturb our neighbours." Levi said with a soft smirk, although he didn't really care much. His daughters happiness out-weighed their neighbours sleep any day. 

"Sorry!" Isabel whispered, putting a finger to her mouth before giggling. 

"Well I asked Santa to do a big big favour for me." Eren leant forward towards the camera, catching Isabel's attention. "I asked Santa if he could deliver something very special to your house!" 

Isabel widened her eyes at him at that. "Oh?" 

"Yeah." Eren nodded. "Do you want to ask papa if he did or not?" 

Isabel nodded before immediately turning in Levi's lap. "Papa did-" She started patting his chest. "Papa Levi did Santa bring Eren?" She asked excitedly. 

With a soft expression, Levi chuckled and pushed her fringe back gently. "He did deliver something. I had to wait up all night just for him." He told her softly. "Let me go get it, yeah?" He kissed her forehead before very gently picking her up. 

Placing her just where he had been sitting, he disappeared off to go and get the bag that Eren had brought round just before he went away. It was a present for Isabel for Christmas, and Levi had told him not to get her anything. That she was getting enough as it was and she would be happy enough just seeing him on call. But no, the brat insisted that he get her something. 

When he came back with the present bag, he sat down and Isabel immediately crawled back onto his lap, trying to see into the bag. Levi of course told her to settle down, and they opened the bag up slowly together. 

There was another little bag inside of it along with a few presents next to it. The little bag did shock him, especially since it was addressed to Levi. All he done was glare at the brat, but he'd save the lecture for after Isabel was in bed. He had only just accepted the fact the brat had bought his daughter presents, never mind him too. 

Levi let Isabel open up the presents herself, it taking her a little while as it was a lot larger than even Levi was expecting. It turned out that Eren had gotten her a fairy treehouse with little figures that she could play around with. She was absolutely ecstatic with it, thanking both Eren and Santa. She thought that Eren had asked Santa to bring it for her, which was adorable. 

The only bad thing was that it set her off and she was now wide awake. In the end, Levi let her stay up another half an hour. It was pushing on ten'o'clock before he put his foot down and said she needed to go to bed. She put up a little bit of a fight, but once Eren said he'd come visit in a few days she settled down. Isabel thanked him again and wished Eren a goodnight before Levi excused the two of them. 

The raven left Eren online while he put Isabel to bed, it taking her a good fifteen minutes to settle down before she grew sleepy. He kissed her goodnight and made sure she was all tucked in before eventually making his way back to Eren. He picked up the laptop, set it on his knee and relaxed back into the sofa. 

"She settled down?" Eren asked softly. It was clear he was getting tired, it nearing four am in Germany. Levi felt bad, but the brunet insisted they continued speaking. 

"Eventually." Levi gave a soft sigh as he relaxed. "She wanted to stay up for another five hours playing with her toys I think. "You didn't have to get her something so big you know, brat." 

"I know." Eren smiled tiredly. "But I wanted to." 

Levi just sighed in response to him, watching him through the screen. Eren seemed absolutely exhausted. After such a tiring day, he would be exhausted too if he had to stay up till four am just to talk to someone. Levi was touched, though. He couldn't help but be so flattered by it, and just knowing that Eren was staying up just to be able to talk to him – it sent his stomach in a bit of a flurry of butterflies. 

"You should get to bed." 

"Don't start this." Eren said, immediately yawning after. "I want to talk to you." 

"You've been talking to me for the past two hours." 

"You know what I mean. Just you." Eren said softly. "Are you going to open your present now?" 

Levi huffed slightly and looked into the bag that held Isabel's present in. "Did you really have to get me something?" 

"It's your birthday. Of course I did." Eren smiled softly. 

Bringing out the smaller bag from inside it, Levi made sure to give another huff just to show Eren that he was annoyed he got him something. He opened up the bag and gently pulled out the small present. 

"Jaeger-" 

"Stop huffing and puffing. Jesus Levi you’re the first person I've ever met to be so pissed off over receiving a present." Eren laughed, the noise flowing through the speakers. 

The sound just warmed Levi's heart really, and he couldn't stay mad at him for long. "You're a student, brat. I know how fucking hard it is for students never mind getting presents and shit for people." 

"Not just for any people, though." Eren said with a smirk, the cheeky tint back in his face regardless of the fact that his eyes were red from tiredness. 

"Shut up." Levi grumbled as he set the bag down on the floor. 

Opening up the present, Levi softened his expression as he lifted out a picture frame. Complete in the frame was a picture of him, Isabel and Eren while ice skating when they went a little while ago. Levi had told him not to take such stupid photos, but right now he was loving it. Of course it was Eren taking a selfie, with Levi looking grouchy in the background. He was behind Isabel, who was holding onto the little penguin and obviously squealing happily as she looked to the camera too. 

"I'm sorry," Eren's voice sounded as he started speaking. "I didn't want to overstep my boundaries by being in the photo, but I noticed you didn't really have many with you in around the house and I didn't know what else to get you-" 

"Eren." Levi stopped him, looking him dead in the eye. "Shut up. I love it." 

"You do?" Eren asked, his worried expression turning into one of a wide grin. 

"Yes. Thank you." Levi said, surprisingly soft enough as he looked back down to the photo. 

He meant it. Levi really did love it. Even though he looked like a grumpy twat in it, he was happy. Isabel was happy. Eren was happy. Fuck, _they were all happy_. If anything, it just pointed out how much Eren had crept into his life, and how happy the little shit actually made him. 

"Happy birthday, Levi." Eren said softly. 

"Merry Shitmas, brat." Levi responded with a small smirk. 

The brunet groaned in reply and rolled his eyes. "You can't let us have one moment just once?" He asked, but he was obviously amused rather than pissed off. 

"No." Levi smirked, setting the picture frame on the coffee table. He'd find a place for it in the morning. "Can’t get your hopes up too much now can I?" He teased Eren, but it just earnt him a soft laugh. 

"Oh of course you can’t." Eren rolled his eyes at him. "Not even a little bit?" 

"Wait till you come back home and then I might." Levi smirked across to the screen. 

"Home? As in our home? Oh Levi who knew you were such a housewife." The brunet laughed at him, setting his chin on his hand again. 

"You practically fucking live here anyway, brat." Levi responded, clicking his tongue as he rested his head back against the sofa. "I don't think I could get rid of you even if I tried." 

"Damn right you couldn't." Eren said, his grin turning into a softer smile. 

Fuck, he was looking at Levi with far too much affection. The brunet was far too easy to read, and he doubted that he meant to show so much emotion half of the time. But Levi could read him like a fucking book. And in times like this, Levi almost didn't want to. He didn't deserve someone like Eren to even like him, never mind look at him like that. 

"I don't think I'd even want to." Levi muttered quietly, watching Eren back through the screen. Watching as his eyes widened slightly and his smile broke into a wide grin. 

Even if Levi was holding back as much as he could from getting feelings for Eren, it was failing. The brat was just too damn perfect. 

"Eren? Was machst du noch zu so später Stunde?" A new voice sounded, Eren visibly flinching as the big light was turned on, lighting up the room. 

"Ma-" Eren turned around, a woman in a dressing gown showing up in the background. "Ich habe es dir gesagt, ich rede mit Levi." 

"Levi?" 

He assumed the woman was Eren's mother, and as she came into focus coming closer to the screen, he could definitely see the resemblance between them. Eren definitely took after his mother. He was unsure about his father, but he definitely took after his mother. 

"Ja," Eren nodded with a smile. "It's still Christmas in Toronto." He switched back to English as Levi couldn't understand German. 

"Oh of course." Eren's mother spoke, moving to Eren's side. Her accent was far thicker than Eren's. It was definitely a strong German compared to Eren's watered down German accent. "Hello there." 

"Levi this is my mum, Carla." Eren introduced them softly. 

"Hello." Levi replied softly. 

"I didn't wake you up, did I ma?" Eren asked her, turning slightly to face her. 

"Oh no it’s okay dear." Carla responded, pushing her sons hair back. "Your father was snoring again don't worry about it." She said with a small, tired laugh. 

"You can go sleep in my room if you want?" 

"Oh shush it's okay." Carla shook her hand at him gently. "Have you had a good Christmas Levi?" She asked him softly through the computer, leaning forwards a little bit to see him. 

"Yes I did, thank you." Levi said, nodding. "Exhausting with Izzy but still nice." 

Carla let out a soft laugh and smiled. "Oh yes, Eren said you had a little one. How old is she again?" 

"Three." Levi told her. 

"Aw how sweet." Carla smiled sweetly. "Well let me tell you even when they’re all grown up it's still exhausting." She giggled, making Levi smirk in response. 

"God please don't tell me that." He joked, shaking his head. 

Eren frowned slightly as he turned to face Carla a little better. "Hey you wanted me to come home for Christmas." 

"I know pumpkin I know." Carla gave a soft, motherly laugh. "Try not to stay up too late okay? You too Levi." She went on to say with a smile. 

"We won't." Eren said, shaking his head. 

"Good. Night night Levi." Carla waved to him through the camera. 

"Goodnight." Levi replied, his tone a grade softer. 

"Goednacht." Carla kissed Eren on the top of the head. 

"Goednacht ma." Eren said, turning to watch her leave. "Schalte das Licht bitte aus." He called as quiet as he could to her. 

"Ja ja." Carla responded, the big light being turned off as she left to go back to bed. 

After a few moments Eren turned to face Levi again, a small smile on his face. 

"You should really get to bed too, _pumpkin_." 

Eren let out a small groan before lightly laughing. "Shut up." He grinned, unable to be angry at the raven for the teasing. "I don't want to." 

"If you say it's because you want to talk to me I'll literally fly over to fucking Germany and beat your ass." Levi threatened, though if anything it just made Eren laugh. 

"Okay then. Come to Germany." 

Levi rolled his eyes at him. "I fucking will do. You've spoken to me for hours. You've made my birthday special, please get some fucking sleep." 

"Aw Levi do you really mean that?" Eren teased, though it was broken by him yawning. "Did I really?" He asked with a hum. 

Roling his eyes, the raven nodded. "Yes, you did. Now will you go get some rest?" He asked him, though it was more of a statement than a question. 

"Yeah yeah. Let me just take you upstairs one minute-" Eren moved to lift up his own laptop. 

Levi waited patiently as he was carried through the house, listening to Eren turning off lights as he travelled upstairs. When Eren was finally in his own room and was flopped on the bed, he set Levi back up so they could see each other. 

"Okay." Eren let out a huff of breath. "I'm going to sleep, are you going too?" 

"Yeah I'll go now too." Levi nodded, definitely feeling guilty for keeping Eren up so late. 

Honestly, Levi was glad that he got to speak to Eren today. He meant it when he said the brat made his birthday special, because fuck he actually did. Speaking to him and especially after dealing with Hanji and Erwin – it finished the day off perfectly. "When are you back?" He asked Eren. 

"I arrive in Toronto on the 30th." Eren told him, getting comfortable in bed and lying down. Seeing as he was upstairs he was talking quieter, so he didn't keep his mother awake or wake up his father. 

"Do you need a lift from the airport?" Levi asked, assuming that of course he did. 

"If you're offering." Eren said cheekily with a snort. 

"Fucking yes. Want it or not?" 

"Please." Eren smiled at him with a hum. 

"Okay, just text me what time your plane gets in." Levi asked him, letting out a very small yawn himself. He covered his mouth with the back of his hand, watching Eren as he was seemingly growing more and more tired too. 

"I don't know off the top of my head, I'll check tomorrow." Eren nodded, half just squishing his cheek against his pillow and snuggling down. 

"Good. Right, get to sleep." Levi ordered. 

"Yeah yeah I'm going." The brunet yawned, turning his face into the pillow slightly. "Goodnight Levi." He smiled sleepily through the screen. 

"Goodnight, brat." Levi replied a little softer before hitting the hang up button.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Was machst du noch zu so später Stunde?" - What are you doing up so late?
> 
> "Ich habe es dir gesagt, ich rede mit Levi." - I have told you, I'm talking to Levi.
> 
> "Schalte das Licht bitte aus." - Turn off the light please.
> 
> \--
> 
> Yay for long chapters!
> 
> I know this is taking awhile to properly get into it, but i do have a plot set up for the boys. I just want them to get together and have their relationship grow first before we get onto that. I hope youre all enjoying it though!
> 
> Thank you everyone for reading!! :) please comment! it helps my motivation aha<3


	10. Night time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi picks up Eren from the airport.

The days that followed Christmas had certainly been interesting. Isabel was of course happy with all of her toys, playing with them constantly. So it did give Levi some free time to relax seeing as he was off work for the holidays too. 

Though all in all, it was a lovely holiday. One that he could actually spend time with his daughter and his friends and not have to worry about anything. He didn't have to worry about work or about any drama around this time of the year. He could just enjoy his own little family. 

Eren of course still wormed his way into their life, even when he was across the world in another continent. Eren was still managing to keep Levi entertained throughout the day whether he wanted it or not. And damn, he did want it. 

Seeing as Germany was ahead of Canada, Eren woke up hours before Levi did. So Levi always had to remember to but his phone on silent as he ended up waking up to about twenty messages from the brat. Eren had a tendency to message him throughout his morning when he was bored, both text messages and picture messages. Levi had to admit that it was pretty sweet of him, and even when he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, his messages cheered him up. 

Unfortunately, Eren's plane coming back into Toronto arrived late at night. It was due to arrive at about half eleven at night. Which wouldn't be a problem, however Eren lived a good fourty five minutes away. Levi did offer to let Eren stay at his for the night, but Eren admittidely wanted to stay in his own bed that night. 

Seeing as it was a bit too late for Isabel, Levi managed to arrange for Erwin to babysit her for the night. Isabel was over the moon that she was going to stay with 'Uncle Erwin', and he was pretty sure Mike would be there for the night too. It was cute, how much she enjoyed staying with them and playing with them. Levi didn't ask for it often, seeing as he didn't like relying on others too much for childcare. But he knew that both Erwin and Hanji adored Isabel, and would happily take her for a night if he needed it. Or If she wanted it. 

Levi had arrived at the airport in good time, having dropped Isabel off early in the day so she could spend some time with the other males. Since the raven hated being late, he made sure to be there for eleven just in case. Levi sat waiting in the terminal, playing on his phone idily whilst listening to the intercom. It wasn't until his name was called that his attention was eventually snatched away. 

Looking up at the call, he was a tall brunet rushing straight towards him, his suitcase pulling behind him sloppily. 

"Hey!" The beam was back on his face as he approached him, immediately wrapping the smaller man in his arms. 

"Oof-" Levi grunted, though slid an arm around him and patted his back gently. It was a little hard seeing as they were both very much wrapped up in winter gear. But even Levi missed the brat enough to return his hug a little. 

"Did you miss me?" 

"By the feels of it _you_ missed _me_." The raven teased as he squeezed the younger male back before pulling away. 

"I know for a fact you missed me." Eren accused, smirking down at him. 

"Sure I did, pumpkin." Levi commented before holding out his hand to take the suitcase. 

Once Eren reluctantly pushed the handle into Levi's hand, the raven started leading him out and towards the car. It was definitely cold for winter this year, the snow being a real pain in Toronto. So obviously both had decided to wrap up extra warm just to be safe. 

Levi didn't do particularly well in the cold, much preferring the warmth of the summer months. 

"Did you have a good flight?" Levi asked as he unlocked the car and started putting the suitcase in the boot. 

"Yeah it was alright." Eren smirked, waiting for Levi before getting into the car the same time as him. "I managed to chat up another fit older person, so this may be the last you see of me." 

"Fucking good." Levi scoffed, turning on the car and immediately switching on the heating. "Been trying to get rid of you for weeks." He said playfully, a small smirk on his features as he started driving. 

"Hey I'm hurt." Eren claimed, placing a hand on his chest with a small laugh. "He's going to be my sugar daddy." 

"Lovely. Could you send some money my way too?" 

"Wants me to move to LA with him." 

"Perfect. Far enough so you're away from me." 

"And! And he even said I give the best head he's ever had." 

"Mustn't have been very hard then." 

"Levi!" Eren slapped his arm lightly, earning a small snortle from the older male. 

"Oh come on I know you're teasing." 

"You're meant to get jealous you know." Eren told him firmly. "You're meant to get all 'no Eren's my brat' and all protective and assert your dominance." 

"You want me to assert my dominance baby?" Levi glanced over to the brunet, catching the blush that was rising up on his cheeks. 

"Honestly you don't really strike me as the type to be able to." Eren replied playfully, watching Levi drive. 

"You don't know what I'm into." Levi claimed with a scoff, leaning back in the car seat comfortably. 

"I'm sure we can find out exactly what you're into, hmm?" Eren cheekily reached over and placed a hand on Levi's thigh. 

Almost a little too bravely, in Levi's widened eyes. He immediately slapped the hand away, Eren cackling away at his response and sounding a little too much like Hanji. 

"Oh go on then," Eren continued laughing. "Assert your dominance, baby." 

\- x - 

The rest of the drive was pretty uneventful. Mostly bickering between the two males. Eren went on to talk about how nice it was to be back in Germany and how he had missed it. Levi eventually had a mini rant about how on boxing day Hanji came over and practically stole his leftover turkey bits. 

He had not been a happy man. 

When they eventually reached Eren's shared apartment, Levi parked up as close as he could to the main doors before they both got out. Being the nice gentleman he was, Levi even took Eren's suitcase up for him as they climbed the stairs. 

Levi hadn't been in Eren's apartment before. Although he was curious to see what it would be like, he was also a little too tired to properly process anything. It was a little run down – as expected for any student, really – and even a little unsure. But the moment Eren opened the door to his apartment, he immediately felt the homeliness radiating from it. Something Levi guessed it was a trait he got from Carla. 

"I'm sorry if it's a mess. It won't be because Armin's pretty good at cleaning but I'm not sure if he's had others over or not." Eren rambled on, trying to excuse any state that the flat might be in. 

Levi didn't mind either way. Honestly he was tired, and was just wanting to make sure Eren got back safely before he headed off home. "'s fine." He mumbled, closing the door quietly behind them. 

To be fair on Eren, the place wasn't actually a mess. It was a lot smaller than what Levi had expected, and the furniture was a little cramped. But the two students had obviously tried to stick to browns and greens, keeping to a warm colour palette. On top of that, it was littered with little nick-nacks and surprisingly flowers too. 

Both men squinted slightly as Eren turned on the light, Levi feeling his eyes physically sting at the tiredness. It was been a long ass day, and he wanted nothing more than to crawl in to bed and fall asleep. However he politely set Eren's suitcase down to the side and out of the way for now, so the brunet could do with it what he pleased. 

"Do you want a cup of tea or anything?" 

"No thanks, I should be heading off." Levi commented, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he yawned. 

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Eren asked as he slipped off his coat. Levi could tell the signs of worry were on his face. It was sweet, but he needn't worry. 

"Yeah I'll be fine. I've done long drives before." Levi shook his head at him as he stuffed his hand back in his coat pocket. 

The brunet didn't look convinced. If anything, he seemed even more worried at the idea of Levi driving home. The older male himself knew that it was dangerous, of course he did. He was tired and wanted sleep, but he knew to be alert as much as he could on the roads at night. Luckily, there weren't many cars on the road at night. 

"I'm not so sure, Levi." Eren hummed, biting his lip. "Can you stay here tonight? Izzy's at Erwin's right, so it should be fine?" He asked, scratching his arm absent-mindedly. 

Levi did let out a sigh at that, turning to face the brunet. "Jaeger I'll be fine getting back." 

"But it's late Levi. I don't want you to crash." 

"It's not that late." 

"It's late enough." 

The brat was being persistent, both makes trying to keep their voices down so they didn't wake up Eren's housemate. Levi didn't want to just pitch up here when he had agreed that he'd be fine just dropping Eren off. Granted, he didn’t realise his flight in was so late at night. But still. 

"Levi please?" 

The older male let out a long sigh before just moving to take his coat and shoes off. Without saying a word, he hung them up next to Eren's, who immediately gave a tired grin in his direction. Levi would seriously have to start saying no to him in situations like this, else he could very easily run circles around him if he wasn't careful. 

"Right, you get to bed. I'll sleep on the sofa or something." Levi rubbed his eyes slowly. 

"What?" Eren gave a quiet laugh. "Just sleep in my bed. Come on Levi we're both adults." He whispered cheekily, leaving the raven standing there as he headed towards the bedroom. 

Levi knew this was a bad idea. His gut feeling was telling him that this was a bad idea. That although Eren may seem innocent, he probably wasn't. However, Levi couldn't help but agree and follow behind the taller male. He was too tired. Too tired and knew Eren far too well to know that he would be just as stubborn with this. 

Eren found some suitable night clothes for Levi to borrow and changed into his own. Levi was wearing joggers and a shirt – a far too big shirt – and Eren had a shirt and boxers on. Both males took their turn in the toilet, both being silent due to tiredness. Though if anything it was a silent agreement that they simply didn't have the energy to talk. 

Once the pair of them had crawled into Eren's bed and settled down, Levi thanking the heavens that the brunet had a double bed, they set off to sleep. 

But of course, sleep would be far too easy. Far too easy for the both of them. 

As far as Levi was aware, Eren was asleep practically instantly. He however had trouble getting to sleep. He didn't toss and turn so to speak, but he did lay there awake, occasionally shifting his weight. It was that horrible tired that everyone experiences in their life. The tiredness where you're just _too tired_ to be able to fall asleep. Too physically exhausted, but mentally you're thinking a mile a minute. 

The raven didn't want to disturb Eren, and seeing as there was little movement from his side of the bed he assumed he had been lucky enough to get to sleep. Levi unfortunately had the joys of just having to lay there, listening to the creaks of the small apartment. 

As he was finally beginning to slip away into sleep, he felt the bed shift. The male beside him slowly moving closer behind him. With what felt like an eternity, Levi felt Eren's presence nearly press up against his back. The warmth was practically radiating off the younger male. 

What Levi didn't expect, however, was the tentative, gentle hand that came up to rest on his hip. Was Levi going crazy or was this happening? Eren was touching his hip. They were sharing a bed, and Eren's hand was currently resting on his hip. 

"Eren," Levi whispered firmly, feeling the brunet jump at the sudden voice. "What are you doing?"

Eren's hand immediately came off his hip, and he shuffled back slightly, creating space between them. "I'm sorry." The brunet spoke into the darkness. "I just - I don't, I'm sorry."

The brat obviously had some nerve. If it was a snuggle up then honestly Levi could let that slide. Eren had dealt with him and his cuddle ways when he had been drunk. He could let Eren have this one this once, really.

But what was he meant to do in this situation? Call him out and make it awkward? Embarrass the shit out of the brat? That was currently the best option right now. Though in these situations, someone would make a move and surely when the person didn't reciprocate it, it made it super awkward?

In Levi's mind, it would do. It wasn't that he didn't want to get closer to Eren – fuck, he was too tired to even process it right now. Levi did like Eren. The more he denied it, the more he couldn’t help but think about the damn brat. Levi didn't do well with relationships. They made him too anxious and he never really clicked with people until it was too late. 

But Eren? It seemed a little too good to be true. He was perfect. They got on like a house on fire, he was attractive, funny. The only thing stopping him was the age difference. Levi knew that age didn't matter when two adults were involved. If Eren was forty then he would be forty eight, and that sounded perfectly fine. But knowing that when Levi was eight, he was just being born. 

If anything, he knew Hanji would say that he was hiding behind that excuse because he was scared. And she would be right. He was too scared of getting hurt. Of all the 'what ifs' and 'buts' that came with dating someone as young as Eren. With dating someone who was still in university and wasn't necessarily as mature as he was. 

Sighing, the raven glanced over his shoulder. "Fucking get here then, brat." He snapped.

"What?" Eren whispered, obviously surprised at Levi's words. 

"Fucking get back here." Levi lifted his arm slightly for Eren to snuggle back up.

The strangest of things always happened at night. If anything, the comfort of the darkness and the thought of the world being asleep - it made situations arise . Levi was tired, and admittedly he did like Eren. As much as he denied it, he did.

"Are you sure?"

"Don't make me change my mind." 

Levi felt the younger male shift behind him at his words, getting closer and snuggling back into him with more confidence. Eren wrapped an arm around Levi's middle and nuzzled his nose into the nape of his neck.

"Sorry." Eren whispered again, Levi feeling the hot breath against his neck.

"Stop apologising." Levi whispered, closing his eyes to try and sleep again.

"If you want I can go sleep on the sofa?"

"Jaeger," Levi sighed, opening his eyes and shifting slightly. "The fuck is up?"

"I just-" Eren bit his lip lightly, pulling back so he could talk properly. "I don't want you to just let me spoon you to shut me up or because you pity me."

"That's not why." Levi retorted, settling down and once again closing his eyes. "Now what's up?" He asked again.

Levi felt the brunet shuffle closer and the warmth of his nose nuzzle into his nape once more. If anything, the brat was cute. It was a bit close, but half of him understood where Eren was coming from.

"Nothin's up." Eren mumbled against his skin. Levi could feel his grip tighten around him, and he knew instantly the brat was lying.

"Stop lying."

"It's stupid."

"Nothings stupid." 

The raven got no response from that. Instead, Eren remained quiet. The breathing evening out only ever so slightly. "Jaeger." He said firmly.

"I'm just overthinking. Honestly Levi it's fine." Eren yawned against his neck. 

With a sigh, Levi dropped it. He knew that Eren was stubborn, and if Eren was adamant on not talking then he would get no where. "Fine. But you can't chat shit about me being the cuddler now."

Eren let out a very small and quiet laugh. "I'm just getting payback." Eren whispered teasingly.

Levi let out a breathy chuckle of his own which turned into a soft sigh. The two males fell into a comfortable silence and they relaxed into one another. As odd as it was, Levi found it surprisingly very comfortable. Well, not only was he comfortable but he also just felt right. Even if Eren was feeling down and just wanting to stay close then that was fine. But Levi was a lot more comfortable than he initially thought he would be.

Levi, although extremely tired, was still aware of his surroundings. Still aware of how Eren's body was pressed up against his back, and how his breath hit the back of his neck at a steady rate. Levi was trying his hardest not to let his mind go all over the place. 

The raven even thought that Eren was flat out asleep until he started shifting again. It was just little movements at first, nuzzling closer and squeezing Levi lightly. As if he was trying to convince himself that Levi was actually there with him. Sober and in the right state of mind. It wasn't until Eren's hand moved on his waist that Levi knew he was awake.

When the tips of the younger male's fingers started dipping beneath the wooly fabric, Levi decided to put a stop to it. 

"Eren." Levi gritted his teeth, a hand shooting to grab the brunet's wrist. 

"I-"

"I'm not doing anything with you." 

No response. It felt like an eternity until the brunet finally moved, his hand pulling back away from Levi's groin area and back to his hip. It wasn't away and off him, but it was close. 

"I'm sorry." Eren whispered impossibly quieter, sounding almost defeated. 

"Will you tell me what's wrong?" Levi asked after a few moments, gently turning to look over his shoulder. 

"Can we talk about it in the morning?" Eren responded with his own question.

Feeling almost bad for saying no, Levi gave a very small nod and turned back on his side fully. He would make sure they did talk about it in the morning. It was awkward enough that he got called out on trying to cuddle Levi, now he'd been called out on making a move on him. Or more rejected.

This was what Levi was worried about. Leading him on and giving him false hope. He didn't want to get Eren's hopes up and then crush them down just because he was too scared to let himself fall for him even more.

"Yes. Now will you go to sleep?"

"Yes." Eren whispered as he hid his face in the ravens neck, wishing for sleep to take him.

\- x- 

In the morning, Eren was somewhat mortified. He woke up still tangled up with Levi, cuddled up to him and their legs intertwined. Everything that happened came back to him and he was humiliated. What had he been thinking?

Eren made a move on Levi. Twice. And both times Levi both rejected him and put up with him. It was ridiculously embarrassing. In some part of his mind Eren had obviously thought it was a good idea. He couldn't even use the excuse of being drunk like Levi could the last time. Eren had been stone cold sober.

The brunet put it down to just having missed Levi. He had missed him over the holidays, and had probably fanaticised about them getting together and how he was going to win the raven over a bit too much over the holidays. This wasn't what he had in mind, but he had chickened out of doing it. Eren liked Levi, a lot. The older man knew that. Eren didn't hold back on flirting and had even officially asked him out. But all of this - it was taking it out of him emotionally.

Eren hadn't been in this situation before. Chasing after someone who was older and somewhat unavailable. If any other male or female he had gone after rejected him, he'd shrug it off and move onto the next person. But Levi? He couldn't. Didn't want to.

Eren wouldn't say that Levi was leading him on - he wasn't. Levi had stated no from the beginning, which was why Eren was worried he was putting up with him out of pity through last night. They definitely did need to communicate and get it all out on the table. They had no clue how the other one was thinking.

To Eren, Levi didn't want anything to do with him in that sense. But at the same time, he wanted to try an win him over as he could _tell_ their was a connection there. Their flirty banter and long late night chats did not mean nothing.

To Levi, he was hiding behind the age gap because he was too scared for a relationship. Eren didn't know this, not at all. To Levi Eren was better off with someone younger, and he didn't really want to be with someone like Levi.

They definitely needed to chat this through, and as much as Eren didn't want to; he hoped deep down that they did.

That morning Eren was extra careful crawling out of bed. He was making sure not to disturb Levi and left him to continue sleeping as he walked out into the kitchen. Still sleepy himself, he yawned absent-mindedly and turned on the kettle.

"Nice sleep?"

"Oh shit-" Eren jumped, turning round to see Armin sitting at the breakfast bench watching him. Mug in hand and smirk on his face. "I didn't see you."

"I heard you come in last night." Armin explained with a laugh.

"Shit sorry." Eren yawned again as he started making his own cup of tea. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"I was already awake." Armin shrugged. "I thought I'd wait up for you but I heard Levi stayed the night." The blond commented and Eren groaned in reply, throwing his head back as he did so.

"Don't even." He responded whilst shaking his head. "I totally fucked up Ar." He said quieter, turning towards him as he waited for the kettle to boil.

The brunet leant back against the cupboard, crossing his arms and frowning in worry.

"How so? You forget to use a condom?"

"Armin I'm serious." Eren said, his eyebrows drawing up in a state of worry. "I genuinely fucked up."

"Okay." Armin nodded in response. He sat up a little straighter and waved his hand at Eren. "Hurry up and get over here. Tell me everything."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope people are still enjoying this haha
> 
> thank you for reading!


	11. Communication.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi talk things through.

Eren told Armin everything that happened. Everything from letting Levi stay the night because he didn't want him to drive home while tired, right up to getting rejected. It was humiliating thinking about it now. Though as Armin did point out, Levi had let Eren cuddle up to him, and even Armin guessed Levi wasn't the type to let just anyone do that. Eren liked to believe that. 

But Armin did agree that the two men needed to talk things through about where they stood. Eren half expected that the whole 'we'll talk about it tomorrow' that was said last night just wouldn't happen. That the two would ignore the events of the previous night and continue on as they were, which in Eren's experience has happened with other people. He had hoped that Armin would agree, however he didn't. Armin kept telling him to make sure they spoke about it, because in the long run Eren would be the one getting hurt. 

When the noise of the bedroom door sounded, both Eren and Armin stopped talking. They turned at the sight of Levi, who looked grumpier than ever. 

"Don't let me interrupt." Levi commented, waving his hand towards the two friends. 

Eren sat up a little straighter on the breakfast bench and watched Levi with a small smile. "Oh no you weren't, don't worry." He said, smiling. "Did you sleep okay?" He asked, watching Levi approach them. He was still wearing the joggers and one of Eren's shirts, which to Eren fit him perfectly. It was slightly too big, being a little long more than anything. But it looked cost. 

Though the brunet did have to remind himself that although he liked seeing Levi wearing his clothes, this was probably going to be the only time he'd see him in them. 

"Yeah. When you weren't trying to steal all the fucking covers." 

"I don't steal all the covers." Eren claimed, frowning back at the raven who was now by his side. 

"Yes you do." Armin interrupted with a small laugh, grinning himself. "You always have done." 

"Traitor." Eren playfully stuck his tongue out at Armin. "I don't appreciate being ganged up on." 

"And I don't appreciate having the covers stolen off me halfway through the night." Levi retorted, a playful smirk on his lips. 

"Touche." Eren gave a soft laugh. "Do you want some tea?" 

"Please." Levi joined the two on the breakfast bench, sitting across from Eren. 

The brunet already knew how Levi liked his tea, and got to making it straight away. The kettle was already boiled, so it was just a case of making it. 

"Right," Armin started speaking, catching Eren and Levi's attention. "I'm going to leave you two to it." He smiled, Eren glancing back at him over his shoulder. 

"You don't have to leave." Levi frowned slightly, assuming it was because he was there. 

"Oh no it's fine, I have some work I need to do on my computer." He explained in response, though Eren knew what he was doing. Armin was giving them some alone time so they could talk everything through. So Eren could actually gather up the courage to properly chat with him. 

He hated it, but Armin always pushed him in the right direction. 

"It was nice to see you again." Armin grinned at Levi, collecting his mug and heading down to his own room. 

"You too." Levi grunted, watching him before turning to Eren. 

Armin had sent Eren a look of 'do it', causing Eren to half shrink in on himself. Honestly it was the last thing he wanted to do, but he knew they did need to talk about it. Plus, he was worried about it being awkward now between them. Eren didn't want to just totally push Levi and end up pushing him away. Making him uncomfortable and the atmosphere between them being completely different. 

Eren didn't want to lose Levi as his friend. 

"Here you go." Eren placed Levi's mug of tea in from of him on the bench. He sat across from him with his own tea. He received a grunt of 'thank you' from Levi, not exactly the most polite but Eren knew better with Levi. He knew that actually this was Levi waking up. He was getting his energy up and he was always a bit more than grumpy on a morning. Eren has dealt with him before, mostly through grumpy messages and one time when Eren accidentally woke Levi up by calling him on a morning. Either way, he didn't take it to heart. 

"So..." Eren cleared his throat, looking down into his tea. He took a moment to compose himself, taking in a deep breath before slowly releasing it. "I think we should talk." He eventually said, lifting his gaze to meet Levi's eyes. 

The raven was looking directly at him. Watching him and giving him his full attention. "Okay." He said slowly. Almost calculative as his facial expression was extremely hard to read. It was anyway, but Eren could sometimes tell when he was thinking. Right now? Right now he most definitely could not. "Do you want to go ahead?" 

Eren nodded at the question, chewing his lip. "Yes." He said up a little. "Yeah, yeah I better." Running a hand through his hair, Eren could feel his heart rate picking up. When the fuck did he get so nervous? Eren wasn't like this. Not with things in this department. Eren knew what his feelings were and knew what he wanted to say. If anything, he had spent half of last night staying awake thinking about it. 

But now that it came to it, his mind was completely blank. "Okay-" Eren looked up at Levi. "You know where I stand, I think? I like you." He said simply. Simple and straight to the point. "And I would like to take you out on a date and see where it goes." 

"Just see where it goes?" Levi frowned ever so slightly. 

"Well," Eren rolled his eyes. "No. Fuck no, not really. I would happily be with you officially. I-I really fucking like you Levi, and I don't want to freak you out. I just mean an actual date and if you feel something then maybe we could go further." 

"I never said I didn't feel something." 

Eren widened his eyes slightly at that. It was clear Levi was uncomfortable talking about this. His shoulders were stiff and his expression blank, if not guarded. But he had just admitted he felt something, right? "What?" Eren asked quietly. 

"Don't make me repeat myself, brat." Levi snapped. "All I've ever said it that I'm too old for you." He said, shaking his head. 

"Levi." Eren sighed, resting his head on his hand. "Surely you don't think age actually matters to me? It's not even that much of an age difference." 

"It's enough of one." Levi half snapped again, looking away from a frown. 

"Oh." Eren inwardly cringed, looking down. That hurt, slightly. That it was enough of an age difference to Levi to just totally disregard him and any chance they may have hurt. That Eren obviously wasn't enough. "Sorry." 

"No-" Levi sighed, looking down and rubbing a hand over his face. "Fuck, I thought I'd be ready for this when I left the room but obviously fucking not." He groaned, mostly speaking to himself. 

Eren simply remained quiet as he waited for Levi, not wanting to push what he was wanting to say. 

"I am not good at this." Levi started slowly, keeping his gaze down and away from Eren's. "The age isn't a massive deal. It makes me anxious I won't fucking lie, but that's shit for another time to worry about. Fucking literally." Levi scoffed to himself. "I don't do well in relationships, Eren. I'm a shit boyfriend. I just panic. I'm fucking rude enough to begin with and most people can't handle my shitty sense of humour. You say it's fine but people get sick of it eventually." 

Eren softened his expression as he listened to him. By the sounds of it, Levi was hiding behind the age gap as an excuse. That Levi was actually very anxious when it came to relationships. That if anything, it sounded like the raven was self-conscious. "Levi, you do realise I have known you for a good while now." He pointed out with a soft smile. "If I was going to get sick of you, I wouldn't practically force myself into spending as much time with you as possible, would I?" He laughed lightly, trying to lighten the atmosphere a little. 

"You will get sick eventually." Levi nodded, certain about that. "Everyone fucking does. The only people who haven't are Hanji and Erwin, and they're special in their own fucked up way." He said, finally meeting Eren's gaze. "I'm just not ready to get into a relationship and invest in it and then have it all fucked up down the line." 

"Ah." Eren nodded sightly at that. "You're scared that I'll hurt you?" 

"I'm not fucking scared." Levi glared at the brunet. 

"Okay, worried." Eren rolled his eyes. "I could say the exact same about you. That in a few months down the line you might dump me. It's okay to worry about being hurt, idiot." Eren laughed very softly. "But if we don't take that chance then what's the point?" Eren tried softly, leaning forward on the table slightly. 

Levi sighed in response and Eren knew that he was getting to him. That he was making sense to the raven and hopefully, hopefully he'd want to take that risk. Eren knew that it was scary going into a relationship. Scary that the other person would eventually leave and completely hurt you. That so much could go wrong. That you could invest all of your time and energy into it and then it could just be ripped from you. But that didn't change the fact that right now, Eren liked Levi. He really fucking liked him, and wanted to try and be with him long term. Prove to him that he wasn't just looking for a quickie. 

"I just don't think I'm ready. Fuck, I've never really been in love before. I'm not good with this shit. At all. I just, can't get it out-" Levi tried explaining, getting slightly frustrated at himself. He knew what he meant. That he knew how he was feeling but he just struggled to explain it. 

"Not even with Isabel's mum?" 

Levi let out a very soft sigh and shook his head. "Isabel-" He started, pausing as he tried to find the right words. "Isabel isn’t mine, biologically." He told Eren. "I'm her Godfather. I was close with her parents, and they died when she was born." 

"Oh Levi- shit." Eren immediately started biting his lip, unsure whether he should comfort him or what. "So you've had her ever since?" 

"Yeah, I adopted her straight after." Levi nodded, linking his fingers together and resting his chin on them very lightly. "She's too young to understand. I'll tell her when she's a little older but I'd like to think that they'd want me to raise her as my own." 

"Of course they would!" Eren exclaimed, nodding. "Of course. I'm sure they'd love what you're doing for her. What happened, if you don't mind me asking?" 

Levi let out a breathy chuckle as he shook his head. "Me and her father Farlan were pretty much brothers. We grew up together and had been through too much shit to be anything else. I didn't exactly have the best of upbringings, and neither did he, but we looked out for each other." The raven started explaining, his voice going a bit softer. "Izzy's mum died in childbirth. It had been a hard birth on her body, and the doctors couldn't save her. That was hard enough on Farlan, losing her and having a newborn so I helped whenever I could. It was when Isabel was a month old that I was babysitting when he was at work." Levi looked away, letting out a small breath. "It was when he didn't come home for about two hours that I got the call to say he was in hospital. Got fucking mugged on the way back by some shitty teenager. They stabbed him and fled or some shite. It was too late by the time anyone found him to help." 

"Shit." 

"Yeah." Levi ran a hand through his hair slowly. "Me being her godfather I obviously took her, and so she didn't go into foster care I adopted her shortly before we moved to Canada." He finally looked up at Eren. 

The brunet gave him a soft smile, of course knowing how hard it must be for Levi too. If he was close to Isabel's mother then he had to mourn her death, followed shortly by Farlan's. All with a newborn and a move to another country. "Honestly I don't know how you managed." Eren admitted. 

"It was hard." Levi nodded. "Very fucking hard. But Izzy had lost so much already and she didn't even know. I couldn't abandon her." He spoke softly. 

"No, I understand." The brunet nodded slowly. It was a lot to take in, and Eren understood now that he didn't know a lot about Levi's past. In fairness, Levi didn't know much about Eren's, but he wanted to know. 

If Levi said he didn't have a good upbringing, then Eren wanted to learn about it. No wonder he was anxious about getting into a relationship if he had lost some close friends, and due to the fact he moved straight after Eren guessed he didn't have any family left either. If anything, Eren didn't want Levi to feel like he would just abandon him. 

"Izzy is my family. I'll never try and replace her parents, but I want to give her the best I can. That's the thing, Eren. She is my fucking life- I have to put her first. I need her to be okay with everything. We come as a package." 

"I know that." Eren said with a sad smile, having listened to Levi's little rant. "I knew that from the beginning. I've always tried to include her, haven't I?" 

The raven thought for a moment before giving a small nod. "Yes." He commented quietly. "I'm just making sure you understand." 

"I do." Eren said firmly. "I've known from the start. I don't expect you to just start ignoring your daughter for me." He smiled softly at Levi, resisting the urge to reach over and take his hand. 

Eren had to be careful not to push his luck. By the sounds of it, Levi was grasping at straws to try and explain himself. The last thing the brunet wanted to do was add even more pressure accidentally and scare him off even more. 

They came to a bit of a lull in the conversation, both males trying to find their next words carefully. Trying to let the other speak first. Eventually, it was the raven who broke the silence. 

"I'm not good at relationships." 

"So you've told me." Eren teased softly, a light grin on his lips. 

"Because I'm fucking not." The brunet earnt an eye roll from Levi. "I'm a shitty boyfriend and not worth it." 

"I think you're worth it." Eren smiled softly at him. "You've been a good friend so far. All that will change is well, all the extra relationship stuff." He said with a soft laugh. "I mean, you do like me right?" 

"Yes Jaeger I fucking like you." Levi glared at the brunet. "It's just a lot to ask right now. Fuck I'm so shit at this-" 

"It's okay." Eren smiled, seeing that Levi was getting slightly wound up. Not in an angry way, but wound up about not being able to say what he meant. What he wanted to say. His breathing had definitely picked up, and the last thing Eren wanted was for Levi to get panicky. "Just talk slowly." He smiled a little softer. 

Levi took a moment to breath before looking up to Eren. "Okay. Eren I like you." He told him slowly and firmly. "I just don’t think I'll be able to, to completely open up." 

"Levi I'm not asking you to completely open up." Eren spoke softly. "I don't expect you to tell me everything about you straight away of completely fall head over heels for me. I just want to be able to grow closer to you. We don't have to rush anything, of course we can go as slow as you want." He said, smiling. 

Eren watched as Levi dropped his gaze, obviously going a bit deeper in thought. It was right now that he wished he could read people's minds. Read whatever Levi was thinking and sort out any worries he had, or even just know to back off. Levi said that he liked him – that was a start. Eren guessed that he wouldn't get much more out of him on the situation, but he knew what Levi was trying to say. That he was scared of getting hurt, and although he knew it might not happen, it was still a risk that once you start worrying about it, it's hard to stop. 

"I think-" Levi started, looking up at Eren and holding his eyesight. He let out a noticeable breath, the brunet assuming it was to calm himself. "Can I just think about it? Please I just need a day or so to sort out my fucking head." Levi frowned, running a hand through his hair and getting slightly stressed at what the fuck he wanted to do. 

Eren let out a small smile, nodding in reply. Of course he was a little disappointed himself right now, and was getting anxious about what Levi would want. But Levi needed his space, and if he had a chance of being with Levi after this, then it was worth it. "Yeah of course you can. Take as much time as you need." Eren said softly. 

"Thank you." Levi let out an exasperated breath, already looking slightly calmer at the fact that he was going to get some time to clear his head. 

They sat in silence for a few moments, sipping at their hot drinks. Eren didn't want it to be awkward between them. He knew that it was best for Levi to go away and stay to himself to think. "What time are you picking Isabel up?" He asked softly. 

"About three." Levi looked at him. "Erwin's having a mini get together again because it's New Years but I'm going to try and get out of it. I can't be fucked for other people right now." He sighed, rubbing his eye. "You doing anything?" 

"Don't know." Eren admitted. "I think one of my friends is having a house party so I'll probably go to that." He told him as he finished up his drink. 

"Well just be careful with that shit. House parties are dangerous." 

Eren let out a soft laugh as he stood up, taking his mug over to the sink to wash it. "Oh yeah, super dangerous." He grinned. "Yeah don't worry, I will be." He smiled. 

At least Levi cared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading!!
> 
> heh levi and eren are finally speaking, but sorry to leave it on a 'give me some time' thing haha.


	12. Contemplation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi spends his time thinking about what Eren said and gets some advice and a special lady in his life.

Levi spent the next two days constantly worry and thinking about what Eren had said. About what could happen and their situation at the moment. 

With it being New Years, Levi did unfortunately have to show his face at Erwin's. There wasn't a lot of people there, mostly just their close friends. But honestly Levi didn't pay much attention to anyone. He was mostly wrapped up in his own mind, his thoughts totally consumed on Eren. 

Though the raven was grateful that Isabel was so young. It meant that they didn't have to stay till past midnight. In the past he had done, and Isabel had just fallen asleep. But this year he just couldn't be bothered to be around other people and used the excuse that she would more than likely start a tantrum. 

Levi however definitely thought over every possibility through his mind. It was currently New Years day, and he planned to just stay in with Isabel. The only thing was, he didn't hear anything from Eren since he had been to his. Of course the brunet had sent him a drunken Happy New Years message the previous night, but other than that they hadn't spoken. 

It had been hell. The raven hadn't really understood how big of a part Eren now played in his life. Even just not talking to the brat had an impact on Levi. It made him grumpier if anything, and he knew that it was his own fault. That Eren was just giving him the space he needed to think everything through. 

For that, he was also very grateful. 

Levi managed to at least try and sort his head out. He knew that he liked Eren. Of course he did. He had started developing feelings for the younger male before he had even realised it. He enjoyed spending time with him, which was more than he could say about most people he met. 

Not only did the brunet make Levi relax, but he actually had a good sense of humour. Even if he wasn't always so out there with his emotions, he definitely found him to be quite funny. And on top of that, Eren wasn't spurred off by his own dull sense of humour. If anything, it created a good level of banter between the two of them. 

Eren was also very easy on the eyes. He had a very soft face, yet a prominent jawline. Levi could definitely tell that Eren would be popular at his university, and the fact that he was well sought out was not a surprise to him. Everything from his fluffy brown hair to his tan features, he was gorgeous. 

Which also created a fair amount of anxiety for Levi. Eren could more than likely have anyone. Deep down, the brunet was definitely a kid at heart. A childish, yet lovable man. Anyone would be lucky to get with him, and that fact just made Levi wonder why the fuck Eren wanted _him_. He could easily have someone more his own age. Someone at university who was just as gorgeous, and someone who didn't have the responsibility of a kid. 

He knew that Eren didn't mind about Isabel, but because of her he had to think about the long term. It wasn't fair on Isabel to welcome Eren into their little family, only for her to be attached and have Eren leave. It wasn't fair at all. 

And then on top of all of that, there was his own worries. His on self-consciousness and his own fears. Although he hated to believe it, he was scared about being abandoned. There was a reason why he didn't have many friends, and a reason why he had built up so many walls to keep people away. He had Isabel and his close friends, and that was all he needed. Or so he thought. 

The only thing he didn't want was to give Eren his everything. To put everything into a relationship only for Eren to dump him and completely ditch him. He'd hate it. It'd crush him. It had been so long since he had given someone himself, both physically and mentally, and because of that he was just so _worried_. 

It was hard for anyone to go through a breakup, of course it was. But that was what Levi was trying so hard to protect himself from. From all the heartbreak and misery down the line. 

But then why didn’t Levi deserve some happiness? Would it not all be worth it for the good times that they'd spend together? 

The idea of being able to hold Eren's hand, or being able to kiss him goodbye sent his stomach in a flurry of butterflies. He knew that they'd argue and there'd be some tough times, there always was. But surely being able to cuddle in on a night time and just to be able to have someone there for you. Someone who cared about you and someone you could vent to. Share your worries to and just rant after a shit day at work. And for it to be Eren? It would make it worth it- right? 

"Isabel." Levi called from the sofa, looking over the back with a sigh. "Izzy come here." 

The small pitter patter of feet could be heard as Isabel ran out from her room towards Levi. She held her cuddly toy in her arms as she waddle-ran to the living room. "Oui?" She asked, moving round the sofa and looking up at him. 

"Up here one sec." Levi said, and instead of trying to climb up Isabel immediately put her hands up for him to lift her up. 

Which of course he did. He picked her up under the armpit and set her sideways on his lap. She was still small enough to cuddle up, being tiny for her age. She was adorable, though, and Levi did love her. It was always him and her against the world. 

"Papa-" she held up her cuddly toy to him as he wrapped his arms around her. 

"Yeah I know. We'll have to give him a wash soon won't we?" 

"Non!" She shook her head quickly. 

With a soft sigh, Levi kissed her forehead and decided not to argue. Not when he was feeling a bit down and not up for a tantrum. "What do you think about Eren, ma Cherie?" He asked her softly, leaning back to look at her. 

Isabel got comfortable on his lap, turning slightly to face him yet leaning into his chest. "Um-" she thought for a moment, tilting her head. "I, super, super, super super like him! Yah!" She nodded happily, a wide grin on her face. 

"Wow you like him that much!" Levi gave a soft gasp, that catching her attention. 

"Yah!" 

"Is that even more than you like papa?" 

"Yah!" 

"Yeah?" Levi scoffed, smiling lightly at her. "You like Eren more than you like me? I'm so hurt." He pretended to pout. 

"Oh um-" Isabel started shaking her head, placing her free hand on his arm. "Non, non papa. Nearly!" She continued shaking her head. 

Of course Levi was just winding her up, knowing fine well that she didn't like Eren more than him. Kids always said that, just out of joking. That and in some way they probably did, because whilst she saw Levi all the time, she didn't see Eren as much as Levi spoke to him. 

"Okay I'll forgive you." He chuckled softly, earning a small giggle from her. "And what do you think if papa and Eren got together? Like Uncle Erwin and Uncle Mike?" He asked her tentatively, of course wanting to see her views. 

She was still too young to completely understand. Fuck, she was only three years. She hadn't even started nursery yet, that coming up very soon. But he did want to ask. Her opinion on the matter meant a great deal to him. 

"Umm-" Isabel drawled out, tilting her head as if she was in deep tonight. "Would- would I see him lots?" 

"Of course you would. He'd be able to visit us more." He nodded. 

"Annnnnd-" she extended the 'n', trying to think up the English. "And um, um it's still me and papa yah?" 

"Yes sweetie it's still me and you." He spoke softly. "I wouldn't leave you okay? He'd be coming to see us. It would be like now but he'd come and visit us more. Would you like that?" 

"Yah!" Isabel squealed excitedly."Is, is he coming today?" 

"I guess he better." Levi smirked softly, knowing his answer. 

Isabel have another happy squeal, immediately trying to shuffle down off Levi. She started babbling away to herself in complete baby nonsense as she did, Levi knowing she got like this when she got excited and had a million and one ideas running round her little head. 

Being gentle, he settled down and watched her immediately scuttle off back to her room. Of course her little waddle-run was adorable, and the fact that she had cute little bear slippers and an autumn coloured dress on with little acorns - she was too cute sometimes. 

Levi sat back a little and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He brought up his conversation with Eren, it stinging a little that they hadn't spoken properly in a few days. But pushing that feeling down, he sent him a quick text. 

**To: [Eren]**   
Hey, brat. We need to talk. You free to come over? 

Levi put his phone down and stood up to start tidying up little bits and bobs. Putting this away and straightening things out. Just something to settle his nerves. Though Eren pretty much replied instantly, his phone making a loud buzzing noise from the coffee table. 

**From: [Eren]**   
I'll be there in 5.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for reading!
> 
> I'm sorry that there is no smut yet, i know a lot of people are wanting it but there will be smut very soon! im trying not to rush the two boys into anything and trying to make it more of a slow build. I do also have some idea for a plot later on and a bit of angst but the smut will be verrry soon dont you all worry!
> 
> <3


	13. The talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren has a drunk chat with Jean and the next day he gets his answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if no one knows what drinking chant it's on about it goes  
> "We like to drink with ______, 'cos ______ is our mate, and when we drink with _______ they down it all in 8,7,6..." and you countdown and they have to down their drink by the end of the chant ((: it tends to only be sung when there's a lot of people and someone's just poured a fresh drink but I'm sure ppl know about it, it was just in case.
> 
> Enjoy!

Connie's parties were definitely not one to be missed. 

Which was how Eren found himself to be stuck right in the middle of his 'End of Year' celebration. Pretty much all of their friends plus others in their year crashed at Connie's student house. Not only was it them from Connie's uni; but there were also people from Eren's and the other various ones located nearby that their friends had disappeared off to.

To say that it was a small gathering would be a grade A lie. It was a full blown house party. The type where you had to apologise just for moving slightly to the side because you accidentally bummed someone. It was all fun, of course. As the night went on - and thanks to Connie constantly shouting 'We like to drink with….' every 5 minutes of numerous people, everyone was well and truly smashed by 11.

It was still a great party. Beer pong set up in the kitchen with enough space for people to get drinks, people gathering in the living room - either sitting or standing. A few daring people even dancing in the corner. Yeah, everyone was smashed. Eren was no exception.

Sure enough, whoever Connie's housemates were would well and truly hate him in the morning. With drunk people came a whole lot of mess. Eren definitely didn't envy them.

In fact, he was one of the drunk people making a mess. Stumbling around and spilling his drink here, there and everywhere. He eventually found a place to settle down on the sofa next to the one and only; Jean.

"How's the boyf?"

Groaning in response, Eren leant his head back against the grubby sofa and tried his best to ignore Jean's voice.

"Oi-"

"What?" Eren huffed at him. "He's not my boyf."

"Not yet." Jean teased him, a drunken grin plastered onto his face. "What are you waiting for? Smash him already-" he drawled out the 'y' as he nudged his elbow into Eren's side multiple times.

"Fuck off-" Eren sloppily tried to slap away Jean's elbow. "I can't deal with you right now."

Eren received a huff in response. The brunet expected Jean to get up and go suck on some randomers face. But apparently his friend decided to stay and pester him some more.

"You know what Eren-" Jean prodded his arm. "I like you."

"I like you too, Jean." Eren laughed as he turned more towards him.

"I mean it."

"I know."

"I know we got off to a tough start- not gonna lie I wanted to beat your face in a few times."

"Likewise."

"Here here-" Jean grinned at Eren's response and cheekily tapped their red plastic cups together. "But you know what?"

"What?" Eren asked, staring over to Jean with a drunken grin and a glazed face. 

"You're alright."

"Cheers." Eren burst out laughing, lifting a hand to place it on his forehead as the room spun around him. "Jesus-"

"I mean it!" Jean sat up straighter and grabbed his forearm gently. "I mean it, Eren. You're alright. Which is why that fucker needs to get on your ass!"

"Jean!" Eren laughed happily, letting his head flop back to stare up at the ceiling.

"You could have anyone. You used to- don't tell me you _like_ him."

"I don't want anyone!" Eren let out an exasperated breath.

He watched as Jean slowly but surely poured more vodka into his cup, most definitely more than needed. 

"Come on. Tell daddy what's up."

"Gross."

Jean simply laughed as he downed the rest of his drink. Afterwards he immediately started pouring himself another. He even had the cheek to nudge Eren to prompt him to start talking.

"Told him how I feel and he said he needs time to think about it." Eren shrugged. "That's it."

"That's shit."

"Yeah it fucking is!" Eren widened his eyes as he nodded in agreement. "I get he needs you know, shitty space but-" he sighed, his thought process trailing off. "Feelings suck."

"They do." Jean patted his shoulder firmly. Or mostly using his shoulder as a support for his weight to keep himself upright. "But you know what doesn't?"

Jean paused, waiting for the moment that Eren turned to face him before giving him a wide grin.

"Tequila."

\- X -

To say Eren was hungover would be an understatement.

Eren spent most of News Years day being a mix of hungover and an anxious ball of nothing. The alcohol from last night definitely gave him a hell of a headache. Luckily, since Armin had managed to get him home, Eren was able to nurse it from bed with water and painkillers.

Armin was the opposite to him. The blond didn't get headaches at all. For that, he fucking envied his best friend. Armin was already moving about the house, doing work and chores whilst Eren lay there, moping in bed.

The worst thing about it was that Eren had all the time to ruminate about everything. He knew that he chatted shit last night to anyone who would listen to him about Levi. Sometimes people had to just offload it, and what better way to do it when everyone's pissed?

Though Eren didn't know what to think. He didn't know what Levi's answer would be. He knew what he wanted it to be, but he was trying not to get his hopes too high. He didn't want to pressure the raven into anything, and hopefully even if he said no they would be able to continue as normal. Just as friends. It would be hard, and fuck would it hurt, but it would be worth it.

Eren liked Levi. He liked spending time with him, and they _clicked_. Or in Eren's eyes they definitely did. It was easy to get on with Levi, if you could see past the hard exterior and his blunt attitude. And little Isabel - he was already attached to her himself. Eren liked spending time with both of them. They got on like a house on fire.

The worst that could happen for Eren was that he completely fucked this up. That him asking Levi would push him further away and eventually he would just drop out of his life. He wouldn't want anything to do with Eren anymore and that would be it. He'd lose someone who had become apart of his daily life. Someone he looked forward to messaging and spending time with. Someone he could relax around and he knew if he wanted to vent he could.

So when Eren got the text stating that Levi was ready to talk, he practically threw himself out of bed. Since he had been laying about doing fuck all, he had to pretty much force himself into the shower. It was only a quick one, just to make sure he didn't stink of alcohol or look too bad. 

Once he was dressed and deemed himself to be presentable enough, he set off immediately towards Levi's. He didn't even try and tame his hair, knowing that that was already a failed battle. 

The drive to Levi's was definitely a nervous one. If anything, all the anxiety from the past two days was catching up to him. For definite. He was more nervous now than he was asking Levi out in the first damn place.

So as he stood in front of the well known apartment door, he let out a long, low breath to calm himself. Once he was happy he wasn't going to throw up, Eren knocked a few times before waiting patiently.

It only took a few moments before the door was pulled open, revealing a just as tired Levi. At least Levi was feeling just as- not bad, but on edge as he was. "Hey."

"Hi." Eren replied, a small smile on his lips. 

"Come in." Levi mumbled slightly, stepping aside to welcome Eren in.

The brunet thanked him and entered the apartment, hoping that they wouldn't be this awkward. That they could speak about whatever Levi wanted to talk about to clear the air. Whether that was a yes, or a no. Eren would respect that.

After taking off his coat and shoes, Eren was immediately greeted by a squealing child. Of course, trust Isabel to be able to break any awkwardness.

"E-ren!"

"Oh hello cutie pie!" Eren gasped and immediately swept her up and into his arms. He set her on his hip, holding her to his side and giving her a side hug. "My gosh I haven't seen you in so long!"

Isabel giggled happily and wrapped her arms around Eren's neck in return as he carried her through into the living room. "Non!" She agreed, shaking her head. "But, but papa said you were near home!" She giggled happily.

Eren hummed and nodded, taking her to go sit down. In the background he could hear Levi pottering about the kitchen, doing something that he was unaware of. "Yeah," He turned his attention back to Isabel. "I went back to my home Germany. It's super close to France." He told her softly.

"Wow wow!" Isabel gasped before patting his chest. "Can, can I come too?" She asked him.

"Maybe next time you and papa go to France you can come and visit yeah?"

"Yah!" Isabel nodded happily.

"So you'll have to ask papa very, very nicely won't you?"

"Yah!"

"Ask papa very nicely about what?" Levi asked, reappearing into the living room.

Eren watched the raven as he set down two mugs of what Eren assumed was tea down onto the table in front of them. If anything, Eren found that incredibly sweet. He had to stop himself from thinking too hard about the gesture. He didn't want to get his hopes up too high already. Even though Levi had obviously made his day the way he liked it, and by doing so expected Eren to stay for longer than a quick chat. 

"Do you want to ask?" Eren prompted her very softly.

"Yah." Isabel nodded, shifting slightly to face her father. "Um, can we go E-ren's home?" She asked with a hopeful grin.

Judging by the confusion on Levi's face, Eren guessed he didn't fully understand. "As in Germany." He told him softly. "Sorry-"

"Oh." Levi sat down across from them, giving a small and slight shrug. "As long as Eren deals with all your temper tantrums." The smirk on his lips made Eren relax infinitely.

The brunet was worried that he had unintentionally overstepped some boundaries by inviting the two of them. When he thought about it, he was literally inviting them to another country, and it hadn't crossed his mind at all.

"No papa!" Isabel snapped him out of his thoughts. "No temper." She stated, shaking her head.

"That's even better then." The raven smirked. "Maybe chérie."

"Can we go tomorrow?" 

"No." Even Eren laughed softly at that before Levi continued speaking. "Maybe later in the year when we go back to France yeah?" He nodded.

"Okay." Isabel pouted slightly, leaning back into Eren.

"Now Izzy-" Levi got her attention again, leaning forward on the sofa. "Can you go play in your room? Papa needs to speak with Eren about adult stuff." he spoke, the very mention of their situation making Eren's stomach churn.

This was it. Here it came. The conclusion that was more than likely Levi rejecting him once more. Telling him to just fuck off out of their lives and that was it. It would be too awkward to continue as normal. How could Eren hold himself back from flirting when even his normal teasing came across as it? Fuck, he even jokingly flirted with his best friend never mind the man he likes.

"Aw but papa-"

"No buts. You can play with Eren after."

Isabel gave a slow nod and took her time in slipping off Eren's knee and onto the floor in hopes that he'd stop her and let her stay. When it was clear that he wasn't, she reluctantly headed to her room and left the two men alone. 

After the sound of Isabel's door closing could be hear, the tension between the two grew. Eren didn’t exactly know where to start. He didn't know what to say and how to approach the subject. Surely Levi would start, seeing as he was the one to invite him over to discuss things? Either way, Eren couldn't just sit and wait.

"So-" He started, giving a small and tentative smile. "Did you have a good New Years?" 

"Yeah." Levi nodded before giving a shrug. He had obviously changed his mind. "As much as I can do with Erwin and Hanji."

Eren laughed lightly in response. "Yeah I suppose." He cleared his throat, looking down at his hands. 

"Did you?" The raven asked after a few moments, Eren having to hold back the cringe.

"Yeah." Eren nodded, biting his lip as he did. "Yeah I did. Got a bit too drunk but-" he laughed quietly, it mostly being under his breath as he looked away.

When the raven didn't reply, Eren wanted to curl up into a ball and die. This is what he didn't want. He didn't want them to lose what they had before - and obviously he had fucked that up. Just from the sheer awkwardness of approaching the subject and just in general was killing the brunet. He could tell where this was going. Levi would say he didn't want anything to do with him and they'd grow apart and stop talking. Eren didn't want that. He'd hate it.

"So uh, you wanted to talk?" Eren eventually spoke, deciding it would be best to approach it. No use beating around the bush.

"Yes."

Eren sat there waiting for Levi to continue. The raven had such a front up that he - for once - couldn't tell whether he was thinking or just staring at him. It was as if they were right back to square one where Levi was trying to get the fuck away from him for not calling.

"Okay…" Eren slowly nodded, trying to prompt Levi to continue.

"I'm not good at this." The raven half blurted out, staring Eren down from across the sofa. Honestly the telltale signs of Levi being nervous was there.

The way he was clenching his jaw, fuck the way his whole body was tense gave it away. If they weren't in Levi's apartment Eren would've guessed that the raven would run out. By the looks of it, he was almost considering it.

But at the sheer fact of the situation, Eren couldn't help but laugh. The way Levi blurted out his mind nervously and how he was looking at Eren as if he was a fucking threat - he found it hilarious. 

"God Levi, you really aren't are you?"

"That's what I'm saying!"

Eren continued laughing, the tension releasing slightly. Both between the two and in Levi's body. "Just speak your mind come on. No worries." Eren prompted, a soft grin lingering on his face. If anything he was trying to get Levi to remember that it was just Eren. That he wouldn't judge him or pressure him.

"Okay." Eren watched as Levi let out a small breath before nodding. "I've been thinking about fucking everything. Everything from Izzy to us and I have to keep her in mind. She's already so attached to you, Jaeger."

"I know she is." Eren smiled softly, understanding Levi's worries. Of course he had to think about Isabel. Like Levi had said the other day, Isabel was his life. If things went south between them, then it would impact Isabel as well.

"We could go round in fucking circles about keeping her in mind and that shit about me and-" Levi waved his hand with an exasperated sigh. "I can't be arsed. It's been enough of a head fuck as it is."

"What do you mean?" He asked softly. Eren frowned slightly, feeling bad. He knew that it would be a head fuck for Levi, but he didn't mean to make him distressed or anything. He knew deep down that Levi was just chatting shit. That he needed to know for his own piece of mind and he had been taking a risk asking. 

"That the two are so fucking contradictory. That I have to keep Izzy in mind- I can't just fuck around with anyone and then a few weeks later that's it. That's not fair on her and I won't do it to her. That's what I'm worried about- and I know that relationships fucking change, so if we try something and two weeks later we decide it's not for us then fuck Jaeger that's fine, it's just if we end badly and that's it. And what if we end badly in a few years or-"

"Levi," Eren leant forward and very gently rested a hand on his shoulder, bringing him to the present. "Breathe, please? I understand what you mean I do. You have to think more long term for her."

The raven nodded, looking over to Eren. "It's a big commitment. I'm not saying this is it, because you like me we have to settle down and shit. I'm just _scared_."

"Just scared to start anything in case it ends badly, whether it's in a few weeks or a few years."

When Levi nodded at that, Eren gave a soft smile. If anything it sounded like Levi was the one being scared of abandonment. He knew where he was coming from for Isabel, and he understood why this would all be a headfuck for him. All the worries about Isabel and about her getting attached. Then all the worries about his own feelings.

"And what's the stuff about yourself?"

The older male sighed at that and rolled his eyes. "Just all that shit that's like 'I have to let myself be happy too' and all that garbage. Trust me I fucking got enough of it from drunk Hanji about how I deserve to be a little selfish and take a risk."

"Can't say I disagree with her."

"Of course you fucking wouldn't." Levi shook his head, causing the younger male to laugh lightly.

"Do you want to know my views on that?" Eren asked softly, biting his lip as he withdrew his hand.

"Doesn't matter-" Levi shrugged, looking up to meet his gaze. "I've made up my mind."

"Oh." 

Eren's expression faltered as he looked away, the comment stinging a little. Of course Levi had made up his mind. Had made up his mind and nothing Eren could say would be able to change it. Nothing to brush away his worries or ease his anxieties. That was it. This was it.

"Sorry- fuck that was horrible to say-" Levi ran a hand through his hair, frowning slightly at himself.

"A little." Eren laughed awkwardly, looking away.

"Sorry, fuck I'm awful. I just meant that I already know what I want to say and once I say it then it might be best for you to say what you want? Does that make sense or am I still sounding like an arsehole?"

Nodding, Eren relaxed back slightly at knowing Levi didn't intentionally snap at him. "No that makes sense." Eren smiled softly.

"Okay good-" the raven let out a small breath. "After all of that…" Levi visibly hesitated before reaching over and taking Eren's hand. Fitting his smaller one into the younger's bigger one. "I want to try."

Eren opened his mouth to say something before closing it. Did he hear that right? Eren was full on ready for a rejection. He was ready for being told no and then get kicked out. But Levi- he wanted to try?

Unable to stop himself, Eren broke out into a wide grin and leant forward. "I knew you couldn't resist me." He laughed, making the situation lighter instead of dragging it back down into a deep conversation. 

Immediately all of his worries left and he could feel his stomach flipping. Levi - the attractive, dilf he met on a one off who became one of his close friends actually liked him in return. Actually wanted to try and put aside his own worries and anxieties and fuck, Eren was excited.

"Don't make me change my mind, brat." Levi rolled his eyes at him. Though Eren doubted Levi was actually serious, if his smirk was going by anything.

"I'm teasing." Eren laughed softly, unable to make his grin go away. He was happy- fuck was he ever. Him and Levi were going to try. He didn't know what that entailed, whether they were officially together or just dating. But he was happy either way. "I want to try too." He added softly.

Shuffling closer to Levi on the sofa, Eren couldn't help himself. He felt giddy right now, trying to hold back his happiness of Levi's answer. Of course he still had a massive grin on his face, but he was trying to rein it in.

"So where are you taking me?"

"Hm?" Eren cocked his head in confusion, finally leaning back into the sofa now that he was sitting next to Levi and not so far away.

"For our date." Levi commented, a soft but faint smirk on his lips.

"Oh-" Eren widened his eyes. "Uhh-"

"Don't tell me after all this time of pining after me you haven't decided what our damn date is?"

Okay, now the raven was definitely teasing him. He was usually the one who had the upper hand and teased Levi. Flirted with him and put him on the spot. Now it was a little more than shocking for the tables to be turned. But Eren definitely wasn't complaining.

"I uh- I didn't really think this far ahead." Eren admitted with a sheepish laugh.

"You can't be serious?"

"Well- uh…"

"I'm kidding, brat." The raven rolled his eyes at him, a soft yet playful smirk on his lips. "I don't expect you to have shit planned."

"Well-" Eren gave a soft laugh. "I can't deny the fact I've thought about it a shit-tonne and thought about all the shit we could do together but I didn't want to get my hopes up ridiculously high really. It'd be creepier that way."

Levi's expression softened every so slightly. If anything Eren would assume he looked more guilty, and Eren didn't want him to feel that way. He knew that he needed time to think about what was best for himself and for Isabel. That he needed to sort his own feelings out without giving Eren false hope. But now? He didn't need to worry about that. They both didn't. They both held feelings for one another and they both wanted to try at this. At _them_. That was enough for Eren.

"Oh I see, all talk and no bite huh?" The raven continued teasing, obviously in a better mood now that they had spoken and made everything clear.

Eren was also in a better mood. He felt like a giddy teenager right now and had to stop himself from pouncing on Levi out of pure happiness. He knew that Levi was a private person in general, so he doubted that he would appreciate it.

"Hey-" Eren pushed Levi's arm lightly. "Give me a chance to try!"

"I'm joking." Levi shook his head at him, a light smirk on his lips.

Eren let out a soft laugh and nodded. "I know I know-" He grinned widely, unable not to at this point. "I'll take you some place this weekend?"

"Okay." Levi nodded at that, softening his expression at the softness in Eren's tone.

"Can I um-" Eren used his free hand to fluff up the back of his hair gently. "Does this mean we're official?"

Levi simply raised his eyebrow in reply to the brunet, and Eren nearly panicked at the feeling of his hand loosening slightly in his grip. Eren had fucked up again hasn't he? He really had to stop asking questions-

"Well I don't plan on sharing you, brat."

"Oh- what?" Eren broke out into a hesitant grin, watching as Levi rolled his eyes at him.

"Yes we're official. Exclusive. Together. Whatever the fuck you want to label us."

Eren laughed softly and let his emotions out, his grin just growing even wider. "Yeah yeah; I bet you're loving this." Gently, Eren poked his cheek with his finger. 

"You're pushing your luck."

"But you like it."

The raven simply scoffed in reply and moved to stand up, and Eren knew that he was right. That Levi did like the attention Eren was giving him, and even if he did ask awkward questions sometimes it cleared the air for the both of them. They were official- exclusive. 'Whatever'. But that was better than nothing.

"What you doing?" Eren asked, watching as Levi let go of his hand and started walking towards the kitchen.

"What are you my mother now?" He earnt a scoff in reply.

"Yeah. Be back by ten or no supper." Eren joked, unable to stop himself. The giddy feeling and the happiness was too much. He was in too much of a good mood not to tease Levi.

It turned out that he was planning on making them food. Eren had came round close to Isabel's dinner time, so Levi made enough for all three of them. He knew that really the raven didn't want him to leave just yet, and Eren didn't want to leave either. Luckily Isabel managed to drag Eren into staying even longer, her showing Eren all of the toys she got for Christmas and in turn roped him into actually playing some games. Not that Eren minded. There was something nice about being trusted with Isabel while Levi was cooking for them.

The three of them had a surprisingly uneventful evening together. Eren of course trying not to outstay his welcome, but also wanting to spend as much time as possible with Levi now that their situation had changed. Though not much had changed. They slipped back into their usual routine, and although things were new and both males were being tentative, Eren was glad that there was no awkwardness. In fact, when they were watching TV with little Isabel snuggled up on Levi's chest, Eren plucked up the courage to wrap his arm around Levi's shoulders.

It was greet with Levi tensing up at first, but the raven soon relaxed into Eren and they stayed there for the rest of the evening. The only time when Levi had to move was when Isabel was being put to bed. Eren said his goodnight while she was on the sofa before Levi carried her off to bed. Luckily she was already half asleep so didn't want a bedtime story. Just a tuck in, a goodnight kiss and her night light turned on. So it only took about 10 minutes for the raven to join him back out on the sofa.

In fact, Eren was surprised when Levi instantly took up his original spot glued to Eren's side. What shocked Eren the most was Levi even rested his head on his shoulder and gently laid a hand on his chest. The brunet wasn't complaining - fuck no, but it just made him aware that things were different now. Good, but different. Of course Eren simply wrapped his arm back around Levi, having established the fact that he was definitely a cuddler whether he admitted it or not.

By the end of the night, both males agreed that it would be best if Eren didn't stay the night. He had stayed previously, but with things being new and fresh, neither of them wanted to jump the gun and rush into too much. It was just a little bit too new for Levi to be totally comfortable with it, and honestly Eren was the same. Eren did however stay to help tidy up all the bits that had made a mess with Eren being there. He helped tidy up Isabel's toys that were in the living room and washed up any glasses while Levi threw away any rubbish.

Eventually the two met at the door, whispering while Eren put on his coat and scarf.

"Text me when you get home?" 

"I will." Eren smiled as he slipped on his winter hat. "You heading straight to bed?"

"Yeah." Levi nodded slowly. Bless, he even looked exhausted. 

It wasn't something that Eren would like to admit, but the past few days were probably very exhausting for Levi. Now that things were cleared up and he didn't have to worry, it was probably hitting him all at once.

"I'll wait till you get home though." The older male added.

"You don't have to."

"It's like eleven at night." Levi sighed, frowning up at Eren. 

"I can look after myself." Eren grinned sleepily, slipping his hands into his pockets and turning towards Levi. "Plus I have my car, I'll be good."

"It's winter, be careful of the ice."

"Yes mum." Eren rolled his eyes, earning a shove to the shoulder which he probably deserved for being cheeky. Levi was just making sure he was safe.

"Get going before I kick you out." Levi grumbled at him, frowning sleepily and obviously eager to get to bed.

"Yes I'm going." Eren laughed softly, opening the door and stepping out. "Hey Levi-" he turned to the older male with a small smile. "Can I kiss you?" He asked quietly, whispering almost as he stood in the hallway of the apartments.

The question obviously took the older male by surprise, confusion slipping through onto his features. Either Levi didn't remember they were together, expected it anyway or Eren shouldn't have asked, but regardless he looked adorable in his confused state.

"Yeah." Eren watched as Levi forced himself to blink a few times. "Sorry, yeah you can." He said, looking a little more alert as he stepped towards Eren.

Grinning softly, Eren moved closer to Levi in return and slipped a hand on his cheek gently. Tilting the older males chin up, he leant down and met him halfway. He sealed their lips together in a soft and gentle kiss, everything just feeling _right_ in that moment. From the softness of Levi's lips and the way he was actually kissing him back, to the fact that this was just the start of their relationship. Eren couldn't help but just be _excited_.

After a few seconds Eren pulled back and gave Levi a broad but soft smile. "Goodnight, brat."

"Goodnight." Eren responded quietly before reluctantly taking his leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SORRY GUYS so I accidentally deleted this chapter when it was finished and totally lost all motivation to write as I'm a bit of a perfectionist and wanted it to be exactly the same ((: go me
> 
> But I'm back on track and back into the flow of things 
> 
> Thank you for reading!!


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